Lavender Heiress, Desert Rose, and Snake Princess
by hazeleyes180
Summary: What could happen if Naruto meets the Kyuubi early in his childhood and they actually became partners...even friends? Growing up, he meets three beautiful girls and become friends with them. They all work together through the ups and downs to realize their love for each other and to achieve their dreams. Smart and Strong Naruto. NarutoxHinataxTemarixAnko.
1. The Beginnings

**Welcome everyone...to my first attempt at a Naruto story for your reading enjoyment! I'm pretty damn nervous about this because this is my first submission to any kind of a public forum for criticism. So I have no idea if anyone beyond my group of friends would like my writing or hate it with every fiber of being.**

**Regardless, as long as this story is well reviewed, it will be long in length as I planned for this to go into the Shippuden years. As you probably guessed from the title, this story will have NarutoxHinataxTemarixAnko. No less, no more so I'm not going to add any more Naruto pairings. You may see hints of other pairings throughout the story, but the focus will be on Naruto and the three beauties. Why those three girls? Because I think it will be cute and funny as the strong-willed Temari interacts with the soft-spoken Hinata and vice-versa. And we all know Anko...anything that involves her will be interesting to read, especially as she deals with her own feelings and the other two girls' affection for Naruto.**

**As for Naruto himself, I'll let you know ahead of time that I hated him being a moron in canon, so I will be writing him as more smarter and somewhat more serious about his training in his childhood. He will still retain his bright and mischievous personality but he'll be more of a badass in battles. I have some nice things planned for him. He won't be so strong that he'd give Jiraiya or Kakashi a run for their porn money on their first meetings but he'd be impressive. However, I do plan on making some of his opponents like Neji and Gaara stronger so there wont be quick battles. There'll be other differences from canon and will differ wildly after the invasion.**

**Finally, I apologize in advance for the depressing tone of this very long first chapter, but I felt it necessary to introduce all four characters at once as they start their separate paths that would eventually cross each other in the future. The tone will pick up considerably after this chapter. Hope you'll enjoy and please leave any review when you have time. I appreciate any constructive criticism. This probably will be the longest chapter I'd write for for this story but that's not to say other chapters won't be long either.**

**P.S. If any beta-reader, especially one with a good sense of humor, which is a department I could always use improvements in, sees potential in this story, I would love to discuss our arrangements via PM. I have lots of free time over the summer so I should be able to write a chapter or two per week if I'm not busy going on vacations.**

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**Warning: This story will contain graphic depictions of violence and gore, mature language, and sexual themes.**

**DISCLAIMER: I do not own Naruto or any of its characters. Otherwise, Naruto would be a smarter badass earlier in canon.**

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**Chapter 1**

**Five years after the Kyuubi attack**

It was nighttime in Konohagakure, the shinobi village in service to the Land of Fire, one of the five major elemental nations ruling the continent. Arguably the most powerful of the five Great Hidden Villages, Konoha survived attacks from the four other major villages and multiple smaller ones in three major wars since the Shodai Hokage founded it almost a century ago. Thanks to the powerful, and somewhat eccentric, shinobi in service to the village, it was a quiet and peaceful night for the citizens who have no fear of any unprovoked attack. Despite that, the Uchiha Police Force could be seen keeping the peace with their silent patrols on the streets and rooftops. The special operations force ANBU, while unseen, also watched for any danger from the shadows.

All whispered conversations in the shadows and drunken mumbles from a few stragglers suddenly ceased as all felt a growing but calm tension in the air. They noticed a lone man walking down a dirty and poorly maintained street, a good sign that he was in the slums. He looked as he already has a particular destination in mind with his calm visage, his dark eyes never wavering. Four ANBUs moved along the rooftops silently and unseen in shadows keeping their eyes on this lone figure as he continued walking calmly and confidently. It wasn't because they considered this man a threat…instead they would give their lives to protect him from any slightest indication of danger from any direction.

The Third Hokage's large white and red robe flared out at the bottom as he walked...more like glided...silently down the street toward an old and decrepit apartment building. He stopped for a moment as he moved the front brim of his Hokage hat up to look at the fresh graffiti covering the front of the building. He sighed as he glanced at some of the words.

"Die!"…"Demon!"… "Monster!"

'_It's already been five years since the Kyuubi attack. Why do the people of this village still have so much hatred?' _Sarutobi Hiruzen angrily thought as he almost forced the front door off its hinges opening it and walked inside. The four ANBUs guarding him split up, two going inside after him in almost invisible blurs while the other two took their spots on the rooftop.

After making his way up several flights of stairs to the top floor, he arrived at the door to the apartment belonging to one Uzumaki Naruto. The young boy, five years old, lived here by himself ever since he was forced out of the orphanage last year and the Hokage had to give him a place to live in since no one else adopted him. As soon as he moved in, the tenants in this building immediately moved out, even its former landlord. In all senses, it was an abandoned building falling further into disrepair since then. Only the occasional genin team hired by Sarutobi himself to do work on the building barely kept it from being unsafe to live in.

He raised his hand to knock on the door and waited. He came to check in on Naruto and give him an envelope with this month's allowance in it. Meanwhile, the Hokage's thoughts went over what had been happening to this child not for the first time…and certainly not the last time. He couldn't help but blame himself for not being able to save the Yondaime (Forth) Hokage, Minato Namikaze, from sacrificing himself to seal the Kyuubi into his own newborn son, Naruto, during the attack five years ago. Naruto's mother, Kushina Uzumaki, who was already dying from the Kyuubi suddenly breaking out of her seal after giving birth, sacrificed herself holding the Kyuubi down with her unique chakra chains to help complete the sealing process. If only Sarutobi had arrived before the **Shiki Fuujin **sealing ritual took place, he would have gladly taken Minato's place in the Shinigami's stomach and at least allow the Yondaime to live and be able to take care of his son and protect him from those who resent his Jinchuriki status.

Instead, after the deaths of Minato and Kushina, Sarutobi was forced to come out of retirement and retake the seat of Hokage until a suitable replacement could be found and he was also forced to keep Naruto's parentage a secret, even from the child himself. Iwagakure in Land of Earth would try everything to kill any offspring of Minato Namikaze, the man who single-handedly decimated half of its army in one battle with his deadly techniques in the last Great Shinobi War. That would include outright invasion and razing of Konoha if Sarutobi knew anything about his earth counterpart, Tsuchikage Onoki. The Hokage could not risk that with his village still recovering its shinobi force from the Kyuubi attack, at least until Naruto grew up to be strong enough to defend himself from most adversaries.

Unfortunately, this also left Naruto at the village's mercy. When it was known that the Kyuubi had been sealed into Naruto, most of the village believed him to be a true reincarnation of the Kyuubi itself instead of being its container. Even though the Hokage and several other notable shinobi publicly announced that Naruto is just a human child like any other except that he carried a heavy burden and should be viewed as a hero. The villagers, in their grief and hatred over losing their beloved Yondaime Hokage, tried to openly attack and kill the infant until the Hokage interfered. Sarutobi then passed a law forbidding any talk of Naruto being the Kyuubi container on pain of death with hope that the hatred will not be passed down to the child's own generation.

In the years since the attack, Sarutobi and several other shinobi, including the famous Hatake Kakashi of the Sharingan, found themselves blocked at every attempt to take Naruto in thanks to the village council making it a mission to keep the child isolated as much as possible. Blinded by their hatred at the loss of the beloved and charismatic Yondaime, the council, minus most of the clan heads, refused to believe the child could not be the Kyuubi and kept finding ways to discreetly have Naruto die early. They started out by denying him even the basic necessaries of life with having him kicked out of stores and restaurants and overcharging him for anything, even expired food. It was only luck that there had been no attempts to attack and kill Naruto outright due to the ANBUs standing guard around him in the shadows. The Hokage, in all his power, could not do much as there weren't any evidence that the council was going behind his back. So he could only watch over Naruto from afar as the child continued to be more and more isolated from everyone in the village, even the children his age as their parents kept warning them to stay away from him.

Sarutobi was brought out of his thoughts by the sudden silence that followed his knocking. It unnerved him somehow…this was not the stillness of an empty house. The silence that filled the air was unnatural. To confirm, he snapped his fingers and two ANBUs appeared to melt out of the wall on both sides of the door and kneeled where they stood.

"Has Naruto-kun left the apartment at any time tonight?" Sarutobi asked the dog-masked ANBU with gravity-defying silver hair kneeling to his right.

"No, Hokage-sama. He entered the apartment mid-afternoon and has never left. Before that, we followed him all over the village. Aside from eating his usual lunch at Ichiraku Ramen, absolutely nothing happened today," the dog-masked ANBU replied quickly. The Hokage seemed to contemplate this for a moment before the ANBU added.

"But…he seemed…out of it…depressed."

A small shiver went down Sarutobi's spine at Inu-san's observation and one thought went through his mind out of instinct. _'It couldn't be…it should be impossible for a five-year old to think about …that._'

He immediately pointed his finger to the door and four ANBUs, two guarding Naruto plus the two that followed the Hokage into the building, quickly surrounded the door, two on each side. Inu-san, on the right side, picked the lock almost instantly and slowly opened the door. As the door tapped fully open against the wall, all four ANBUs immediately disappeared into the apartment with a textbook criss-cross entry procedure followed by the Hokage walking in briskly.

The first thing that Sarutobi noticed was the darkness and the unnatural quietness in the entire apartment as Inu-san and his partner stood in the kitchen to the left and the other two stood in the living room to the right. Even if Naruto was sleeping, shallow breathing should have been heard. After a quick scan, he noticed that there was some dim light coming from under the door of the bathroom down the hallway from the entrance. He hoped to all hopes that the child was just taking a bath and fell asleep. Inu-san shattered that thought into a million pieces.

"Hokage-sama, I smell…blood," was said with a crack in his voice.

Not wasting any time, the Hokage, with speed not seen by any for years, appeared at the bathroom door and ripped it off the frame with a simple flick of his hand and stood in the doorway. He couldn't choke down his gasp.

Blood. If one had to describe the horrific sight the Hokage and the ANBUs saw in the tiny bathroom in one word, it would be blood. Dark red blood in impossible quantity for a five-years old boy's body. On every wall showed blood sprayed on every single inch. The floor was covered wall to wall with a thin sheen of diluted blood. On the floor next to the tub was a rusty and chipped kunai, apparently discarded by someone long ago…covered in blood. A blood soaked blonde boy sat in the tiny bathtub filled to the brim with a mixture of blood and water, eyes closed. His face was deathly pale. The last thing to hit everyone was the thick and horrid smell of old blood in this tiny space.

Sarutobi had to choke back his vomit and it was only thanks to his years of seeing death and gore on the battlefield. One ANBU with him wasn't as steeled and immediately took his mask off to vomit his dinner onto the hallway floor. Inu-san gasped and stood stone still, not believing the sight. The last two ANBU cried out in shock and turned away from the sight and the smell. The Hokage quickly went to Naruto's still and naked body and scooped him out of the bathtub, getting blood everywhere on his white and red robe. He cradled the body to his chest as he checked for a pulse. He found one! It was barely there though. He then searched for any cut on the neck or the arms to stop the bleeding. To his surprise there were none, not even a scar.

"Ji…ji, why…" a small and weak voice barely reached Sarutobi's ears. The Hokage immediately stopped his frantic checking of the body and looked at Naruto's face. What he saw broke his heart.

Cold, sad, and crushing emptiness was all Sarutobi Hiruzen saw in Naruto's half-opened eyes.

"Jiji…why…didn't…I die? I wanted…to," the pale boy managed to whisper out. Sarutobi's body started trembling and tears came out of his eyes as he hugged the fragile boy closer to his chest. Inu-san took his mask off to choke back a sob and wipe a tear away. The other three couldn't stand to watch this and went off to pretend to check the surroundings while dealing with tears of their own.

"Naruto-kun, you need to…tell me…why you did this," the Hokage choked out through his tears.

"Tired…of..not…being seen…want…to..exist," Naruto tiredly whispered out before slowly sobbing. "I..cut my wrist…four times. Every time, I go to sleep…then…I wake up…with no cut."

'_It must be the Kyuubi's chakra. How ironic…your 'curse' saving your life,'_ the Hokage thought sadly. He noticed that Naruto fell unconscious again. He finally stood up, carefully wrapped the naked body with the Hokage haori, and carried the boy out of the apartment, making a beeline for the hospital with his best speed, Inu-san hot on his heels. The other ANBUs stayed behind to clean up and try to get over what they had seen.

**Next Day at the Hospital**

The Hokage walked into the front lobby of the hospital followed by a tall Jonin with long dirty blond hair tied into a ponytail high up the back. Both had grim expressions. The receptionist gasped and stood up to greet them. A stern hand gesture from the Third implied no greeting was necessary as the two men continued walking past the stunned woman to the stairwell. At the third floor, they stepped off and walked briskly to Naruto's room, which was currently under heavy watch with two guards at the door and an ANBU hidden on the ceiling inside the room.

The Hokage immediately dismissed the guards with a gesture. As they entered the room, he then snapped his fingers to allow the ANBU to appear from the ceiling. It turned out to be Inu-san. They all had a quick look at Naruto, who still looked pale and unconscious on his bed. As the blond Jonin stood in the room, Inu-san and the Hokage immediately set to putting up several security seals around the room. After a moment of sullen silence, the Hokage finally spoke up.

"Yamanaka Inochi, what happens here never gets past these four walls, understood?"

The answer was a grim nod from the blond Jonin now identified as Yamanaka Inochi.

"Now, I wish to thank you for discreetly taking care of the five who were with us, as well the doctor who was here last night. I doubt they would miss the memories anyway," the Hokage said with a sad smile.

"I wouldn't want to remember this event either if I had a choice, Hokage-sama. To think this child is the same age as my daughter…" Inochi trailed off as he looked at the feeble blond boy sleeping peacefully in the bed. The Third nodded before turning toward Inu-san.

"Kakashi-san, would you like to have your memory from last night altered?"

The ANBU now identified as Kakashi took his dog mask off to reveal a man with a lazy-looking eye, the other covered by a small black eye-patch, designed to fit inside the ANBU mask. A dark blue spandex facemask covered the bottom half of his face all the way up to his nose. He shook his head.

"No, I'd like to remember this, Hokage-sama. It'll encourage me to make sure he's better protected from now on," Kakashi said in an unusually serious tone. The Third nodded again with a sad smile before turning to Inochi again.

"Inochi-san, as we have discussed before, I would like for you to go into Naruto-kun's mind and completely remove any trance of the past 48 hours from his memories. Then go back to the time he just left the orphanage and work from there to the present, altering some events he encountered in subtle ways that may help him feel a little better about himself. Even random acts of kindness from non-existent strangers will help. As for why he ended up here, an accident involving him hitting his head should work and explain the foggy memories he may have after this. If you wish to object about any ethical issue with this, now is the time to do it and I will note it in the report that I'm making for Hokage's eyes only."

Inochi shook his head. How could he object to this? No child should ever have to think about committing suicide. He then walked over to Naruto's bedside and pulled up a chair so he could sit comfortably as he dived into the boy's mind. As he reached up to the boy's forehead with his hand, the Hokage decided to give the Jonin a warning.

"Be careful, only the Yondaime knew exactly how the Kyuubi seal works. You may encounter the fox in there. If you do, give it a wide berth and try your best to fix the memories. The Kyuubi should not be able to harm you but it may try to talk to you so beware."

Inochi only hesitated for half a second before touching his hand to the boy's forehead. The closing of his eyes and slumping of his shoulders were the only signs Inochi successfully went inside Naruto's head. The Hokage sighed.

"I hope this works," he mumbled as he and Kakashi stood watching over the two blondes.

**Two Hours Later**

Inochi blinked awake as he took his hand off Naruto's forehead. The Hokage and Kakashi looked over and they were surprised to see the blond Jonin suddenly shoot up out of his seat, his body trembling with rage.

"SON OF A BITCH! HOW DARE THEY! HOW COULD THEY TREAT THIS KIND-HEARTED BOY LIKE TRASH!" roared Inochi as he slammed a fist on a nearby wall, cracking it a little before he managed to breathe out and calm down a little. The Hokage was stunned to see the normally calm Yamanaka Inochi fly off the handle like that. He decided to give the blonde a minute to calm down some more. Kakashi had the same thought.

"Did you see anything notable?" the Hokage finally inquired after a moment's silence.

"Nothing. Absolutely nothing, Hokage-sama," Inochi murmured. This odd statement confused the Third and Kakashi.

"That's the thing. Naruto-san was never attacked or hurt physically. The worst they ever did physically were selling him bad food and throwing him out of stores and restaurants. Apparently they did not see the point of directly harming the boy since it would most likely mean their death due to your law. So they just acted like he didn't exist. They ignored him anywhere he went. The only times he actually got attention was whenever he saw you and ate ramen with that old man and his daughter. I wonder which is worse…physical harm or having your entire existence denied anywhere you went?"

The Hokage had a grim expression on his face as he took a seat on a nearby chair pinching the bridge of his nose. Kakashi continued to stand, glaring intensely at a particular spot on a wall. After a few minutes of silence, the Third finally spoke up.

"Do you think you did enough alternations that he may be okay with his psyche after this?"

"It's hard to say but in my study of his mind, he was so desperate for attention that a single encounter with a kind stranger will boost his belief in his existence exponentially. I scattered several "encounters" like that throughout the past year and altered some of the negative events he encountered to have somewhat better outcomes. I even put myself in one of the new memories so he would feel comfortable talking to me if he sees me again around this village and I may introduce my daughter to him to be friends. I couldn't do more than that because I'm sure Naruto-san would notice. I honestly believe that when he wakes up, he will be somewhat more chipper about himself and able to deal with his treatment better from here on. I still hope he would make a friend or two soon. That would go a long way toward validating his belief in his existence," Inochi said with an analytical tone.

"Very good. What about the Kyuubi? Did you encounter it?" the Third inquired.

"No, Hokage-sama. I could feel its presence in Naruto-san's mindscape but the memories were locked away in another section far away from the Kyuubi, so I was able to work unimpeded," Inochi said with apparent relief.

"Good. The Yondaime did an excellent job with the seal then. Now, I need you two to understand why none of this leaves the room," the Hokage began with a firm gaze at the two Jonins before continuing. "If word of this got back to the people who are still angry about the Kyuubi, they will believe that whatever they were doing was working and will intensify their efforts, making it worse and isolating Naruto-kun even more. I do not want to see a repeat of what I saw last night. Naruto and suicide simply do not exist together in the same sentence. I know you two believe this as well."

The other two men nodded in agreement. The Third sighed before putting his hand up in a half ram seal and whispering "Kai" to release the security seals in the room. Inochi then excused himself to return to his regular duties. Kakashi, sensing that Naruto may be coming out of his sleep, decided to put his ANBU mask back on and returned to his hidden position on the ceiling. The Hokage straightened his outfit a little bit before taking a seat next to Naruto's bed. It wasn't long before Naruto stirred awake as if he woke up from a long and fulfilling night of sleep. The other two occupants of this room immediately noticed the changes in the little boy's beautiful blue eyes. They weren't as empty or soulless. They showed more brightness with some confusion as the boy took in his surroundings.

"Jiji-san?" Naruto said in surprise as he saw the Third and then surveyed the hospital room in a confused pout. "What…what am I doing here? Did something happen?"

Sarutobi Hiruzen, the Sandaime Hokage known as the famed "God of Shinobi" and "The Professor", was suddenly stumped and silently cursed his stupidity at forgetting to ask Inochi for details regarding the supposed "accident" that had the boy land in the hospital. He heard the tiniest bit of snickering and glanced menacingly in the direction of the hidden Kakashi. The corners of his lips barely twitched upward when he heard a gulp. He's still got it.

"Naruto-kun, I'm glad you're ok. You're in the hospital. I was told you were admitted here unconscious and that you hit your head. What was the last thing you remember doing before you lost consciousness?" Hokage tried to fish the fake event out of him without suspicion. He saw Kakashi shrug and did a "so-so" gesture with his hand out the corner of his eyes. Maybe he should make the one-eyed Jonin a sensei for three brats as punishment. Naruto concentrated to remember what 'happened'.

"I was…walking through the park and I saw a girl trying to climb a tree," Naruto said as he continued to work through the fogginess in his head. "All I could remember about her was that she had long brown hair. I didn't even see her face. I was watching her and she suddenly screamed and slipped off the tree. I…ran toward her and tried to save her. I guess I hit my head when I jumped under her because that was the last thing I remember."

The Hokage nodded empathically while inside he was considering giving Inochi more pay for this. _'A brown-haired girl in this village? Needle in a haystack' _Still, he'd make sure the boy wouldn't needlessly look for the 'girl'.

"That's right, Naruto-kun. That child and her father brought you in asking for you to be admitted. That was two days ago and you have been sleeping since then. That was a rather nasty lump you had on your head," the Hokage continued to spin off the 'event'. He saw Naruto brighten up considerably at this 'act of kindness'. Just how badly did he need to be acknowledged?

"Is…is she still around?" Naruto inquired hopefully.

"Unfortunately not anymore," the Hokage's heart almost broke at the boy's disappointment before he continued. "It turns out she's the daughter of a traveling merchant and they left the village. She was playing in that park to pass the time while her father did some business. She did leave the staff a message to pass on to you."

Naruto perked his head up, waiting for the message.

"She wanted to thank you for saving her and she hopes to see you again eventually," the Hokage said with a warm smile. Naruto's smile was enough to brighten up the room. The Third saw Kakashi give a thumb up for his acting…maybe he'll put off making the Jonin a sensei for a while longer.

"Now…Naruto-kun, you get some rest and I have to get back to my duties. The doctor will release you tomorrow morning. Get some sleep in the meantime, ok?" The Third stood up, getting ready to leave. Naruto gave an enthusiastic nod; his smile still plastered on his face as the Hokage stepped out and closed the door. Kakashi immediately appeared at his side.

"Keep an eye on the child and let me know of any change. In the meantime, make a list of the stores and restaurants that kicked him out or overcharged him and I will personally take care of that. We're going to make sure things improve, if only a little, for him from here on," the Hokage dictated to the ANBU. The dog-masked man nodded as he took an orange book out of nowhere to start reading it. The Third suddenly had a perverted grin and a small blush on his cheeks.

"So…you get to that part with Ami-chan yet?"

Kakashi let out a perverted giggle.

"That was the best so far, Hokage-sama! I wonder how Jiraiya-sama got the 'research material' for that?"

Suddenly, the temperature in the hallway chilled a few degrees. Both men noticed this and looked around to see several angry female nurses and patients glaring at them as if they wanted the men to combust on the spot. The two men gulped and quickly shunshined out, lest they suffer the women's wrath.

Back in Naruto's room, the still-smiling boy let out a long sigh as he saw the Hokage leave. His fake smile faded like a wisp from his face as he laid back on his bed. He could feel his crushing depression and shame crash over him like waves.

"Sorry, JiJi-san, whatever you did in my head...I still remember everything. It didn't work...it...still...hurts," the blond boy, his bright blue eyes dulling to near darkness, trailed off as he curled into a ball and started shaking with silent sobs.

**Land of Wind**

At around the same time in Sunagakure, the shinobi village serving Land of Wind, one eight-year old Sabaku no Temari was walking down a street with her family. She had dirty blond hair done up in four separate ponytails, giving her a unique hairstyle compared to other girls. She wore a simple but expensive-looking dark blue kimino that brought out her teal eyes and she was carrying a small ornate fan, a memento of her mother. Her mother had passed away giving birth to her youngest brother. Temari still hadn't forgiven her father along with Elder Chiyo of the village council for the circumstances leading to her beloved mother's death.

On her left was her seven-year old brother, Kankuro. He had brown hair, wore a simple t-shirt and cargo shorts, and he had a nice face. He probably would have gotten girls in the future if she didn't have to wonder about his growing obsession with creepy puppets and makeups. On her right was her red-haired father, the Yondaime Kazekage of this village in his full Kazekage robes. Despite his somewhat short stature, there was no denying the power that radiated from his body. His ability to control gold dust anywhere around him was the only reason the village hadn't gone bankrupt in the years since its loss to Konoha in the last Great War, despite the Wind Lord requesting more services from Konoha due to its lower rates. Next to her father on the other side is her youngest brother who just turned six, Gaara. He was basically a mini-version of the Kazekage, with short and shaggy red hair and the same permanent scowl on their faces. They even had the same black rings around their light green eyes, making them look like raccoons. He wore a simple black full body suit with a white tunic wrapping around his right shoulder down to wrap around his waist. He also carried a small gourd on his back, full of his sentient sand.

Everyone on the street gave the family a wide berth. Temari knew it wasn't out of respect for the family, who were basically royalty in this village. It was because they feared Gaara due to the fact that he's the Jinchuriki of the Ichibi, or One-tailed Beast, named Shukaku. At the urgings of Elder Chiyo and the council, the Kazekage tried to increase the quality of the village's shinobi force to attract more business from the Wind Lord by sealing the Ichibi into Gaara still in his mother's womb. This led to complications during the childbirth and the mother passed away. Temari gritted her teeth at the memory. Since the loss, the family became broken and dysfunctional. Temari and Kankuro barely managed a tiny semblance of a sibling relationship while living in constant fear of their youngest brother. Their father became cold and distant, deciding to focus all of his attention on the village instead of his children. The worst of all was Gaara.

Due to his sentient sand controlled by the Ichibi inside him, other people feared him and ran away from him. At first, Gaara simply wanted to make friends but his sand kept accidently killing some people. The longer this went on, the more desperate the red-haired boy got until he was broken finally by the betrayal of his caretaker, his mother's brother, Yashamaru. From what Temari knew of that event, her uncle tried to kill Gaara and, upon failing, he told the little boy that his mother hated him, cursing him throughout the labor until she died and that his father ordered this assassination attempt. That was what broke Gaara's hold on his sanity. He had his sand crush his uncle to death and swore to live only for himself. He then went around validating his existence by killing at will and being feared. Since then, the village hated him even more. Temari let out a sigh. How could her family be so fucked up? She didn't even understand the reason for this walk together with her family. They never did anything remotely family-like since her mother's death. She hated her father, but she wouldn't go against his wishes so that's why she was walking among them, ignoring the villagers' stares.

Out of nowhere, she heard several soft thuds. _What was that?_ She looked to her right to see some kunais embedded into Gaara's raised sand, their sharp tips inches from Gaara's face. He wasn't expecting that and suddenly screamed in surprise and rage. His sand flared up and reached above for a rooftop across from the family. The Kazekage immediately shoved Temari and Kankuro into a nook between two buildings with a quick warning to stay there. Gaara's shrill screams still filled the air as everyone around them immediately retreated into their buildings or hiding spots. The last thing she saw before entering the nook was the sand dragging a Chunin by his leg, his face frozen in terror, off the roof. The blonde girl noticed offhandedly that the Kazekage seemed almost too prepared for this sudden attack, as if he was expecting this.

As she hid in the nook, her whole body trembling at the rising killing intent in the air, she instinctively wrapped her arms around the similarly trembling Kankuro in a feeble attempt at protection. It wasn't long until Gaara's screams stopped. After a moment of hearing the soft sound of shifting sand and some groaning, the two children almost considered stepping out of the nook to see what was happening. That notion was immediately shot to hell, however.

Loud and shrill screams of terror and agony filled the air and the two poor children trembled even more. Temari could smell urine from Kankuro but she paid it no mind. She was about to piss herself too, after all. Suddenly a sickening ripping sound was heard and there was a wet thud somewhere. Then another sickening ripping sound and a wet thud a few seconds later. The agonized screams was no more as Temari heard one more ripping sound, longer and more sickeningly wet this time. Temari spared a look at what she could see outside the nook. At first there was nothing. All she could see was the dusty street and a few buildings across the street from the nook. She would regret her decision to look outside at that moment as she saw the apparently discarded Chunin landing in front of the nook with a wet thud, as if it was a gift to the children trapped inside.

Only that it wasn't a whole Chunin. His left arm was ripped out at the socket and his body was ripped in half at the waist. She could see the guts spilling out, the spinal cord with some tendrils of nerves spread out at the end, as if they were searching for the other half of the body, and so much blood pooling under the remains. The worst thing she saw was the frozen look of terror on his face with sand dribbling out of his wide open mouth and nostrils, as if he had seen pure evil himself. Taking this sight in, she finally let her bladder control go and opened her mouth wide in a silent scream as her body instinctively prevented her from making any sound in pure self-preservation. The last things she could remember before fainting under the stress of this horror were seeing the glitter of gold dust floating from the ground as her father prepared to subdue Gaara and hearing her youngest brother's insane cackling.

**Somewhere in an abandoned laboratory in Land of the Sea**

"….hey….are…ok? Wake….," was all twelve-year old Mitarashi Anko heard through the fogginess of her mind as she slowly woke up. She felt some light slapping on her right cheek. Her eyes hurt as she opened them slowly to see a dim light overhead. She could barely make out two outlines on either side of her.

"Wha…?" was all she could manage to say before she was struck silent by her sudden inability to move her limbs.

"Don't worry…we'll get you out of this. Just remain calm," one of the two outlines said in a soft feminine voice.

"Why should we? She's that traitor's whore…we should just cut her throat and be done with it!" the other outline said in an angry male voice before the female shushed him.

'_Wait…what? Where's sensei? Last thing I remember was when I left with him on our training trip,'_ Anko thought as she tried to get up again only to be restrained by something.

She moved her head down and what she saw shocked her so much she shrieked. She found herself completely naked and strapped to a cold metal table, her arms and legs restrained in a spread eagle fashion. She panicked as she tried and failed to cover herself up. So complete was her panic that she failed to notice that her body had developed some since she left with her sensei.

"Get her something to cover up now!" the female outline hissed at her male counterpart.

"Why should a damn whore care about her mod-?" was all the man said before the female struck him hard in the face, a thunderous sound echoing through the large room.

"That was an order…is that understood? After you find something, do not say a single word for the rest of this mission or I will have you up on insubordination!" the female ground out through gritted teeth over the young girl's panicked whimpering. The stunned male simply bowed and left Anko's line of sight.

The young girl continued to yell and struggle at the restraints as the female-voiced outline tried to calm her down as she worked on the restraints. After a long minute of struggling, Anko was finally freed of her restraints. She immediately curled up into a ball and started to sob with the female outline trying to soothe her. The male finally returned with an old discarded blanket found somewhere else in the lab. The female ordered her counterpart out of the lab to stand guard while she would talk to Anko.

After what seemed to be hours, but actually just a few minutes of crying, the purple-haired girl finally regained her composure somewhat and stopped trembling, feeling less exposed in the blanket covering her. She sat up and took a look around and she saw that she was in a large experiment room, apparently abandoned if papers strewn about and missing equipment were any indication. In the dimness of the room, she could see nine other tables just like the one she was sitting on and each had a corpse strapped to it. All of them apparently died not too long ago and were starting to show effects of decomposition. Was she the only one who survived whatever experimentation she went through? If that was the case, why was she left behind? Her eyes finally adjusted to the dim light and she finally had a good look at her female rescuer.

Anko saw that her savior was an ANBU. The larger woman was wearing a dark purple ANBU outfit, showing her bare arms and a tattoo on each shoulder denoting her as an ANBU and as a captain of a squad respectively. Anko noticed her long hair, similar in color to her own purple hair, and her cat mask. She took a shuddering breath, resolving to find out what happened to her.

"Neko-san, I…don't know what's going on. Where am I?" Anko forced the words out of her throat, hoarse from her panic a few minutes ago. The cat-masked ANBU seemed to take a moment to consider her response.

"Before we start on that, I need you to answer a couple questions honestly. I'm afraid what you say now will affect what's going to happen to you from here on. I hope for your sake that you were innocent of this whole thing," Neko-san said in an even tone. Anko grew more confused but the ANBU continued before she could say anything.

"First, what is your name and age?"

"Mitarashi Anko. I'm nine," Anko replied quickly. The ANBU was taken aback at that. She already knew who she was so no surprise there, but this girl did not have the body of a nine-year old from what she's seen. She had started developing her breasts and hips already plus there was an odd mark just above this girl's chest. She didn't sense any sign of lying from this girl.

"Ok…Anko-chan, what was the last thing you remember?" ANBU inquired, trepidation clear in her voice.

"The last thing I remember was being on the road with Orochimaru-sensei. We just left Konoha in the middle of the night a few days ago."

The ANBU was stunned to hear this. If this was true, this meant that this girl had the past three years of her life wiped out. She had to ask one more question and she'll decide if she'll have to kill this girl right now or take her back to Konoha for more questions.

"When you left Konoha, did Orochimaru ever say anything about why he was suddenly leaving? We know it was a last minute departure. Did you get an explanation?" Neko-san asked with a slight edge to her voice as she subconsciously reached down for a kunai. Anko was puzzled at the lack of honorific for her sensei's name but paid it no mind.

"Sensei said that he was taking me with him on a long-term training trip. He said we were leaving at that time because he suddenly felt like it. It was typical of him so I didn't think much of it. Why did you ask that? Did something happen to sensei? Was he captured and experimented on too?"

Sensing no malice from Anko, the ANBU let out a silent sigh and moved her hand away from the kunai to put it on one of hers.

"Anko-chan, I'm sorry but there's no other way to say this so I'm just going to say it all now. You'll learn more about this when we take you back to Konoha with us. The night you left with Orochimaru, he betrayed the village. He was caught doing human experiments on kidnapped villagers and shinobi and escaped from Hokage-sama and Jiraiya-sama. He must have taken you along at the very last minute and apparently fed you lies about his reasons for leaving. If you had admitted knowing about his betrayal at any point up till now, I would have killed you right now for treason instead of simply questioning you," the cat-masked ANBU said, her heart breaking as she watched the young teen's face change from confusion to shock to teary betrayal. She had to continue before she lost her resolve.

"That's not all. He apparently thought of you as an experiment, not a student, because he used you in whatever experiment this was. This is a lab that the intelligence division believes to have belonged to Orochimaru. We were sent to investigate here and we found you. You're the only one alive in this entire building. Lastly, it's been three years since Orochimaru's betrayal. You're not nine, you're around twelve now," the ANBU quickly got out as she watched Anko break down further into despair.

Anko couldn't believe it. Her sensei, the one she admired for years, used her and threw her aside like trash. She lost three years of her life. Worst of all, she's been associated with a traitor and she felt dirty and tainted. After a few minutes of trembling and sobbing, she turned her despair into pure and unrestrained rage.

"I'm going to kill that son of a- AAAAAHHHH!" Anko suddenly cried out at the top of her lung, unable to bear the pain of what felt like red-hot fire growing throughout her body as she clutched at where the strange mark was. She fell over and started thrashing around on top of the table. The shocked ANBU tried to hold her down and stuck three of her fingers into the girl's mouth, preventing her from biting her tongue off in this pain. The purple-haired ANBU noticed the strange mark on her chest glowing red as she continued to hold the thrashing girl down. Another loud scream of agony ripped through the abandoned base and the sea surrounding it.

**Konohagakure, the Hyuuga Compound**

A few months after what happened with Naruto, we find ourselves in the main meeting hall of the large compound. This was where the elders and leaders of both main and branch families meet to discuss any issue about the Hyuuga clan. Right now, it was filled with many members of both branches, awaiting news about a special event happening now. Five-year old heiress Hyuuga Hinata was one of the many members sitting on the well-polished floor, her hands clenching tightly at the fabric of her dark purple kimino as she willed herself not to run away. The reason why she was nervous was because she was left alone with these people; those that hated her for being weak and shy, traits unbecoming of a Hyuuga heiress.

Ever since she was born, all she knew was scorn from most of the clan for her kind and shy nature. All Hyuuga clan members were supposed to be proud, strong, and take pride in their clan being one of the two most powerful clans in the village, competing with the Uchiha clan for the top position. The fact that she hadn't shown any pride in being a Hyuuga, instead preferring to see herself as equals with others, including the branch members, was a sore subject for the older Hyuugas around her. Especially when a rising prodigy, Neji, was branded due to the fact that his father was born a few minutes later after Hinata's father, the twin brother.

The only solace Hinata got from the constant harassment by the entire clan she was to be in charge of one day was her mother and father. Her mother loved her daughter unconditionally and allowed her to be who she wanted to be, and her father, while stern in public, cared for her deeply and doesn't take the elders' words about her to heart. She believed that she would survive anything as long as she had the love and support of her parents. This day was grating on her self-confidence however.

"….who knows, maybe this new child will replace that weak girl and we can finally have a proper heiress. She'll be branded and thrown in with the branch members she loves so much," one elder was overheard in an apparently loud voice, hoping to reach the trembling girl's ears. Several branch members in earshot, including young Neji and his father, stiffened.

This cruel banter was all she had to hear throughout the day and she was starting to break down. However, she remained strong for her parents, who were currently occupied giving birth to her new sister. She would be happier having another person to love in this cruel clan as she grows up with her new sister. She looked forward to her times with her mother, father, and sister. However, she hoped that news about her mother's condition would improve soon.

Finally, after what seemed like eternity, the main doors to the meeting hall slid open to reveal Hyuuga Hiashi, Hinata's father. The entire hall fell into eerie silence at his presence, since being the powerful head of the clan demanded that respect. She almost jumped up in delight at the sight of her father before she had to keep her composure as a "proper" Hyuuga in front of the other people. Any hope of a happy occasion was shattered when she saw something wrong in his grim expression. '_It couldn't be…'_

Hiashi was feeling numb and weak on the inside, despite keeping up the charade on the outside. He had known that there would be complications in the birth due to forewarnings by their doctor and his wife was prepared for whatever may happen. However, he hoped with every fiber of his being that his beloved wife would survive the childbirth and they'd have a healthy baby girl. The baby, now named Hanabi, did come out healthy but his beloved Hitomi did not survive the process. It took him a long few minutes to shed his tears over Hitomi's covered body and regain his Hyuuga composure. It won't do him any good to look weak in front of the elders…now that he needed to be stronger than ever for his two daughters, Hinata and Hanabi. Sometimes he wondered if he was really in control of the clan rather than the elders who tried to run things from behind the scene.

As he stood in the doorway, he spared a glance at his oldest daughter and his innards almost shattered into a million pieces as he saw the realization creep up on her face. He would be proud of her being able to keep up the Hyuuga composure so long if the situation didn't require that she should do the opposite…let it all out and fall into a sobbing heap. He would allow her that chance soon.

"I bring you good news and sad news. My wife has given birth to a very healthy Hyuuga. Her eyes are strong and she will grow up to be a strong member of this clan. She shall be called Hanabi. I hope all of you will do your best to help her grow into a strong Hyuuga," the clan head said with no happiness in his voice. No one in the room had said anything or moved to congratulate him. He continued. "However, due to complications during the childbirth, my wife, Hitomi, has passed away. She died peacefully in her sleep after birth."

The room remained deathly silent. Only one sound could be heard coming from Hinata. She was slowly grinding her teeth with trembling eyes trying to keep her composure.

"With this sad news, there will be no celebration and I wish to retire with my daughters to our quarters to grieve in privacy for the rest of the day," Hiashi said with a tone that left no room for objections. He held his hand out for Hinata to rise from her sitting position and allowed her to walk past him as he closed the doors.

The entire room broke into whispers.

"Daughter, you may go ahead. I will pick up your sister and join you," Hiashi said with as much affection he could spare in his voice. Hinata did not object as they split up and picked up her pace toward their private quarters.

Hiashi arrived a few minutes later with a tiny bundle in his arms to hear loud sobs and wails filling the air. After a moment of searching, he found his eldest daughter with her head buried in her arms on the living room table, tears pooling on the table. Her kimino had come loose and became disheveled from apparently running the rest of the way here. As if sensing the mood, the little bundle named Hanabi in his arm started to wail loudly too. Hiashi could do nothing but sit by Hinata with a soothing hand on her back as he allowed a few tears to run down his cheeks as well.

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**So...that's the first chapter. I hope you enjoyed reading it. Don't worry...the story won't be this dark all the time. There should be plenty of opportunities for humor and happy moments. I just have to be sure to capitalize on that as the writer.**

**As you can see, I took a few liberties with this story from canon. First, there's Naruto and his apparent attempt at suicide. Don't worry, he won't be that dark again. I just needed something to start him off before he meets the other characters and I was tired of the normal 'mob chases after him, stabs and burns him to death and he miraculously recovers from wounds that not even canon Naruto would survive' stuff that usually started off most of the other stories I've read here. So why not do what canon implied? That Naruto was basically ignored his entire childhood with only whispers behind his back? Temari...I didn't do much to change her from canon yet in this chapter. She was just a scared eight-year old who had to deal with Gaara's newly acquired insanity up close. Anko...I made her several years younger than canon and I had Orochimaru's betrayal occur AFTER the Kyuubi's attack. Although it was never exactly implied when it happened anyway and with new information revealed in manga, there was a good chance that he did leave Konoha during Naruto's early years. Hinata didn't have any noticeable change in this chapter but you will see a big change next chapter.**

**I hope you enjoyed this first chapter and things should get better from here on as I listen to criticisms and advices on how to improve my writing. Please be sure to leave your reviews as long as they are constructive and reasonable. I don't mind tons of praises either but I'll take what I can get. :-)**


	2. The Start of a Beautiful Friendship

**Here's the second chapter! I was already working on this when I posted the first chapter. It's early but it seems like people liked the first chapter so far so I decided to go ahead and post this. Thank you to those who reviewed the first chapter…I appreciate the positive comments.**

**I hope you'll enjoy reading this installment and be sure to leave constructive reviews if you have any issue. **

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**WARNING: This story will contain mature language, sexual themes, and graphic depictions of violence and gore. **

**DISCLAIMER: I do not own Naruto or any of its characters.**

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**Chapter 2: The Start of a Beautiful Friendship**

**Nighttime in Konohagakure, Two Years Later**

Naruto, seven years old, was taking a leisurely walk through the quiet streets of the clans' district admiring the beautiful full moon in all its glory on this night. He was heading home to his crappy apartment from the Nara compound, the residence of his new best friend, Nara Shikamaru. He had been invited over for dinner with the Naras and played a shogi match afterward with Shikamaru. The blonde found it hilarious to see his friend, a bona fide genius, be both fascinated and frustrated at his opponent's unconventional tactics, even though he ended up winning each match in the end. Naruto considered it a victory on his part if he forced the pineapple-haired lazy ass to take his famous "thinking" pose during the match.

He wondered how he ended up turning his life around somewhat and made friends so quickly upon leaving the hospital after that fateful night two years ago. Yes, he did remember everything. Every drop of spraying blood, the sound of his wrist tearing open with the jagged blade of the rusty kunai, and his surrogate grandfather crying over his bloodied body. He had no idea how, but he knew as he woke up that the memories planted in his head were fakes and the real ones remained. The fake events were just foreign objects in his head that he recognized immediately.

Naruto could have thrown a huge fit with the Hokage for messing with his head, but he understood upon seeing his surrogate grandfather's anxious face…that the Hokage simply wanted the blonde to be happier. He then did a better acting job than the Hokage could ever do to assuage the old man's fears about his mental state. After the Hokage left the room, the blond spent all day in the bed thinking about what happened the night before and…maybe he should push down his pain and loneliness and give himself one more chance to try to meet people. The crushing depression he felt about what he attempted last night didn't make that decision easy, though. He wondered how to start and it wasn't long until he remembered that tall and blond ponytailed man he saw in his fake memories.

It wasn't long after he was released that he ran into the tall man around the village and found his name to be Yamanaka Inochi. He was then quickly introduced to the man's daughter, Ino. They became fast friends and, soon after, the blond boy was introduced to Shikamaru and the eternally jolly (as long as the word 'fat' isn't heard) Akimichi Choji, best friend to Shikamaru as well. The four of them got along even though they annoyed each other with Ino's bossiness, Shikamaru's laziness, Choji's happy-go-lucky attitude, and Naruto's pranks. In the two years since meeting the three, Naruto's quality of life improved and he found himself more genuinely happy these days, despite shouldering the hatred of the village as a whole. He also loved meeting the rest of their clans.

He was scared out of his wits when he was first invited over for dinner with the three clans when as they gathered for their bi-monthly dinner party. After some prodding from his friends (and Ino's use of force), he finally relented to the invitation. To say it was an eye-opening experience to eat dinner with other friendly people was as much an understatement as saying Hatake Kakashi liked porn a tiny bit. Naruto's social ineptness, especially his poor table manners, endeared him to the clans. They took it upon themselves to beat some etiquettes and common senses about society into him whenever he came for dinner with any one of the three clans. Thanks to their hard work, he was actually able to meet a complete stranger without flinching in fright. Now if he could fix his occasional stuttering, he could move on to firm handshakes and eye contact.

It took him a long time to truly pull himself out of the depression and guilt that came with trying to take his own life. Now he felt well enough to not fall into despair and feel shame upon remembering what he had tried to do and seeing the pained expression on his surrogate grandfather's face afterward. At this rate, he'll fully recover and no one would ever know he actually remembered these events. Pulling himself out of his thoughts, Naruto noticed he was near the Hyuuga compound and gulped loudly. He never liked the guards' white pupil-less eyes following his every movement as he walked past, scowls forever etched on their faces. He wondered if the cute girl he had met earlier in the year lived inside this compound.

**Three Months Ago**

Naruto grunted loudly as he found himself tackled to the dusty ground of the neighborhood playground by an overenthusiastic Ino as she made to 'tag' him.

"Ow! Take it easy on me, Ino-chan! Where in the rules did it say it was okay for you to tackle someone to the ground in the middle of a simple game of tag?" Naruto yelled from under Ino's body. Ino stood up and straightened her shoulder-length platinum blond hair to make it less disheveled. She wore a simple purple blouse with white capris.

"Where in the rules did it say it wasn't allowed?" Ino shot back as she lightly dusted herself off. Naruto had no retort for that and resorted to angry murmurings about 'new rule forbidding Ino-chan from ever playing'. Ino just giggled before she noticed the time and it was getting late.

"Naruto-chan, I have to go home for dinner. You gonna be ok?"

She got a bright smile and a nod from the blonde prankster. She left after a quick goodbye. When she disappeared, Naruto let out a sigh.

"I guess I'll go home and treat myself to some cups of ramen…. wait…that's not so bad!"

He had a picture of a ramen cup in each eye and drool coming out a corner of his mouth as he contemplated this lucky development. Before he left the playground though, he heard scuffling in the bushes nearby. Curious, he decided to check out the disturbance. As he got closer, he heard several boys' voices and a whisper quiet girl's voice. Forcing his way through a bush, he stumbled upon a group of three boys ganging up on a small and timid indigo-haired girl. He saw that she was wearing a simple black training outfit and was quite cute, but what his eyes really locked onto were her beautiful white eyes that were tinted with a hint of lavender. All four turned in his direction.

"What? Don't bother us and beat it, shrimp! We're just asking this Hyuuga why she thought her clan is so superior over the rest of us," the largest of the three boys tried to dismiss Naruto. The blond would have none of that and he sure as hell wasn't going to take having his height made fun of! He let out a battle cry and leaped into the group.

A few minutes later found poor Naruto beaten and winded as he laid on the ground with the boys, having grown bored with Naruto and the Hyuuga girl, leaving for something better to do. The timid girl stared at the heaving body of Naruto and gathered her courage to speak up.

"A-ano…I-I'm sorry y-y-ou had to jump in…it's..because I-I'm weak," the girl forced her words out in a tiny and stuttering voice Naruto had to strain to hear. After a moment of catching his breath, the boy slowly stood up and dusted himself off a little bit. After a moment of tense silence, Naruto finally spoke up.

"Don't worry… strong or weak… I can't stand to see someone hurt if I could help it," he said with a foxy grin. The girl's cheeks reddened considerably at seeing the grin. She wanted to know more about this boy. Before she could introduce herself…

"Hyuuga ojou-sama! It's time to return to the compound," a deep male voice echoed throughout the forest. The girl's eyes widened before she bowed apologetically and quickly left. Naruto shrugged it off and walked away, wondering who that girl was. It wasn't long before he forgot about the scuffle thanks to the powers of ramen.

**Present**

Naruto made it past the two creepy Hyuugas guarding the main gate and was walking along one of the compound's long walls. He realized it was already almost midnight. '_Wow, that shogi match took longer than I expected_.' As he walked in silence, he heard scraping of a foot on a rough surface, maybe a roof tile. It was barely there. He doubted any other human could hear this without chakra enhancement. He had learned that he was blessed with heightened hearing compared to other people because he was always the first to hear anything long before others noticed. He just never realized this until he was finally spending times with his peers. He also discovered at the same time that his sense of smell was about as good as a normal dog's. He made use of it as well. He sniffed the air and he could smell a slight hint of lavender. Was that a fresh shampoo scent?

Naruto narrowed his eyes as he scanned his surroundings. The scraping and scuffling sound was getting closer. Deciding to follow his instincts, he pressed his back up flat against the compound wall and waited. The scent of lavender grew stronger as the scuffling got closer. A long minute of total silence followed. Thick and stuffy tension filled the night air as Naruto shifted his eyes right and left down the length of the wall on either side. A light thud as a pair of feet carefully landed onto the street from the top of the wall was like a landmine going off next to Naruto since he was concentrating on his senses. He held back a pained gasp as he looked to his right and could see a tall figure clad entirely in a black shinobi outfit. He grew alert as his eyes searched the figure and landed on a small bundle in the figure's left arm. He saw right away it was a little girl in a white nightgown tied up tightly and she was gagged as well. Her lavender-tinted eyes were wide-open with terror.

**Few Minutes Ago in Hinata's Bedroom**

Hyuuga Hinata was glad for this kind of day…a day in which the entire clan was busy entertaining a diplomat from the Land of Lightning's Kumogakure. Earlier in the day, the diplomat had just signed a peace agreement with Konohagakure to tentatively help each other in certain aspects like aids, sharing some missions, and making some military concessions. That kind of dinner event kept the clan busy with preparations. A busy clan does not harass Hinata as much so she relished these days, which were still too few and far in between for her liking. The only thing she had to worry about today was dressing up formally and keeping silent and composed at the dining table and that was it. As she took a bath, relaxed in her comfortable bed, and drifted off to sleep, her last thoughts were of that cute blond-haired boy with the gorgeous blue eyes, those cute whisker marks, and his heart stopping grin.

The next moment, her white eyes snapped wide-open as she felt a rough hand on her mouth and a sharp blade against her neck. She looked right up at a large black-clad man and she saw the clear message in his cold and dark eyes.

'Make a sound and you die.'

Her entire body stiffened at once and she couldn't breathe. So complete was her terror that she barely noticed being pulled out of her bed then tied up and gagged quickly. She only registered bits of the scenery changing as she was carried under the assailant's arm from her bedroom to the compound's rooftops and then to the street just outside the walls. She was too scared to think about what would happen to her. It was only when, upon landing on the street, she locked eyes with a pair of beautiful blue eyes floating in the shadows by the wall nearby that she came to life. They were shining brightly in the moonlight, the same eyes she daydreamed about a moment ago. Somehow, she felt her terror abiding and she started struggling. She didn't want to be taken away from here…from her father and sister. For some reason, she didn't want to just give up in front of these blue eyes.

**Now**

Naruto saw the little girl start to struggle after they had locked eyes. He immediately recognized her as the indigo-haired girl he met three months ago and gritted his teeth. This was a bad situation…he knew he was no match for that black figure. He didn't smell a single trace of that guy, a good sign this one was an experienced shinobi. He would die before he even got the first syllable out if he tried to alert someone…but he had to save that girl! Naruto would be the first out of anyone to know that if she were taken away, she would suffer so much. Having had been through so much already by his age of seven, he would never allow that to happen to someone else if he could help it. As he watched the black figure from his hiding spot, he noticed the shinobi was growing frustrated with the girl's struggling. He was being distracted somewhat. This was Naruto's chance as he took a steady breath.

The black-clad man was growing irritated with the Hyuuga girl's struggling in his arm. Since when did she suddenly grow a backbone? He knew from his observations of the girl at the dinner earlier tonight that she was a cowardly and submissive girl. He had thought she would be the easier of the two Hyuuga girls to kidnap for his secret mission to Kumo in their efforts to acquire more bloodlines for the village. His guise as a diplomat was simply a ruse to study the security of the Hyuuga compound during the dinner so he could attempt the kidnapping after he had returned to his hotel room. What would happen to the young girl and the shitstorm that would come when news of this gets out…he didn't care. He was happy to serve the Raikage.

That was the last thought he had before he heard a loud whap and felt pain like no other, even in his long career as a shinobi, strike his entire body all at once; pain so great he almost swallowed his tongue in shock. He barely noticed that the ungodly pain originated from a certain pair of balls hanging between his legs. The last thing he saw before his eyes rolled up toward the top of his head and collapsing in a heap was a long piece of stick wedged tightly between his legs. _'Why was it there?'_

Naruto had to wince as he finished taking a full-strength golf swing with the stick, which he found nearby, into the man's family jewels from behind. The man slowly collapsed in a heap with a strained groan as his arms instinctively reached for his prized treasure, dropping the tied-up Hyuuga girl in the process. Naruto was waiting for this and caught the girl before she hit the ground. At that moment, they locked eyes again and he saw tears of relief and joy dribbling from the girl's beautiful eyes. He ripped the gag out of her mouth and she immediately cried happily into the boy's chest. His cheeks warmed up and he couldn't understand why but he had no time to think on this since the man would recover quickly.

"It's alright. I'll get someone for you!" the blonde said as he used all his strength to carry the girl as far as he could from the man in black still in a quivering heap. He then inhaled in all the air his considerably large lungs were able to take.

"OOOOOIIII! THAT GUY IN BLACK'S TOUCHING THAT PRETTY HYUUGA GIRL IN WEIRD PLACES!" could be heard echoing throughout the entire village of Konohagakure. In an unrelated matter, all the fathers could be seen twitching to check in on their precious daughters at this time, just to be sure.

Hinata was stunned into silence. She had mixed feelings about this. She was blushing at being called pretty but she was embarrassed by the possible misunderstandings about having been touched in 'weird places'…whatever they were.

Naruto only had to wait half a second before he heard the thunderous crash of someone smashing through a solid wall and then a man's yell of pure primal rage from inside the compound walls. The entire compound lit up at once and Naruto snickered. He figured something like this would happen after a couple years of dealing with Ino's father and his overprotective nature. Apparently, it was something only a father and a daughter shared. With his sensitive hearing, he heard thundering footsteps zeroing on this location fast. Good…he and the girl were able to get out of this okay.

"You….you…goddamn brat! I'll…KILL YOU!"

Naruto quickly turned around and instinctively pushed the tied-up girl onto the ground behind him. He only had enough time to see the man in black standing on shaking legs, with one hand enclosed around his precious nuts and the other outstretched in front, before the boy felt a small twinge in his chest and heard a wet squelch. He heard the girl scream in horror from behind…that wasn't right. At that moment, a tall and enraged white-eyed man with long straight black hair jumped over the wall and appeared between the two children and the now terrified black-clad man.

If it were not for the seriousness of the situation, it would have been hilarious to see a man of nobility standing barefoot on the street in his white silk pajamas, shredded and dirtied by his alterative to using a door just a moment ago. Not to mention his wild and disheveled hair. Before the black-clad man could get a word out, the Hyuuga man charged at the assailant with his Byakugan eyes blaring full-blast. In under a second he struck multiple times with fatal precision as all chakra-enhanced strikes were aimed at the forehead, throat, lungs, kidneys, and heart. It was all over when the black-clad man fell, already dead, into a broken heap with dark blood pooling underneath, the moon reflecting off it.

Naruto had to admire the way that Hyuuga man dealt with the bad guy. He must be this girl's father then. Before he could say anything in greeting his head turned foggy and felt that he was falling slowly to the right. He didn't understand this…he should be fine. Was this related to why the girl behind him was still crying out in panic? He watched rather than felt as his body hit the ground in slow motion, first with his knee, then the hip followed by the shoulder, and finally his temple tapped against the cold pavement of the street. He didn't understand why he couldn't move his limbs anymore. He used all his waning strength to look down at his body and saw the cause of his problem. A small kunai was embedded into his chest, almost up to the handle, courtesy of the black-clad man before his brutal death.

'_It was this damn thing. I should pull it out then. It would help the cute girl behind me stop crying.'_ But no matter what he did, he couldn't muster the strength to move even a finger. He needed to do this…he should not keep the girl sad any longer. He felt his body being gently laid on its back by the Hyuuga man. He finally had a good look at the man. He looked like he would be a stern and impassive man on most occasions but, at this time, Naruto could see concern in the man's white eyes, the veins popping out around them. He could hear the man's quickened breathing. He also saw the tear-streaked face of the girl he had just saved standing behind the man, apparently just freed from her bindings.

"Don't die! Please…you need to live! I can't take it if you died saving me!" the white-eye girl cried out painfully from behind the man.

That was when it hit Naruto as his breathing became shallow and his throat started to gurgle with blood. He was dying. There was no coming back from this one, he was sure. He didn't even feel anything as he saw the man quickly pull the kunai out with a wet sound, ripped the shirt off, wadded it up to apply pressure to the gushing wound, and shouted something unintelligible at some far off space… apparently addressing other people that arrived at the scene. Naruto's last sight was the heart-wrenching sight of the indigo-haired girl's tear-streaked and sobbing face, still pleading for him to not die with her beautiful lavender-tinted eyes. His last thought came before blackness took him.

'_Damn it…I'm not coming back from this one and this time I didn't want to go. Damn irony. I wanted to be able protect my precious people…but... I won't be able to do that now. At least I saved that girl. That was…better than most people could…do…I… guess.' _

**Hinata and Hiashi**

"Get one of our physicians here now and make haste! I want this child kept alive!" Hiashi shouted at the group of Hyuugas gathering as he kept the pressure on this child's gaping wound, with no trace of his Hyuuga composure present. Some of them obeyed and left in search of an available medic inside the compound. The others were reluctant.

"Hiashi-sama, we shouldn't treat him. Don't you know who he is? We can finally get rid of this brat…this de-" an older Hyuuga man was cut off as he choked under Hiashi's impressive killing intent directed toward him.

"Finish that word and I will gladly have the Hokage execute you for breaking the law! This 'brat' saved my daughter from being kidnapped and most likely a fate worse than death at the risk of his life. I owe it to him to keep him alive so…STOP YOUR BULLSHIT AND GO AWAY IF YOU'RE NOT GOING TO DO SOMETHING!" Hiashi roared at the trembling Hyuugas, his Byakugan blaring with promise of a painful fate for anyone who dared object. Only his younger identical twin brother, Hizashi, opted to step up to the boy's body in an effort to help his brother out.

"Brother-sama, his chakra is fading. What can we do?" Hizashi spoke softly as he kneeled down and checked the boy over with his Byakugan. Hiashi could only grunt in frustration as he desperately tried to keep the boy alive.

Hinata barely noticed her angry father and uncle next to her as she continued to stare down at the blonde boy's still and paling form. She became numb and her tears had stopped. She couldn't understand this. Why did this happen? If she weren't so weak, this boy wouldn't have had to sacrifice himself to save her worthless self. She looked down at her trembling hands. She felt like she had the boy's blood on them, even though they were perfectly clean. Before she could fall further into her despair, she heard an unnatural yelp of surprise each from her father and uncle. Before she could look up to see what happened, she was yanked backward by her nightgown's collar, her father's blood-soaked hand clenching tightly on to it.

Landing some distance away from the boy's body with his daughter and brother, Hiashi was shocked to see bright red charka emit from the body and surround it as if it was protecting the boy. He had to deactivate his Byakugan lest he be blinded by the dense and pure chakra radiating from the boy. He also had to resist the familiar and overpowering presence in the air as the other Hyuugas scrambled to get away from the body as quickly as possible. He heard his daughter cry out in shock at this sight.

"Father…what is that! Is it hurting him?" Hinata screamed with none of her usual stutter, pulling hard at her father's death grip on her collar. Her father took a minute to look at what was happening. He shared an astonished look with Hizashi before replying.

"No…it seems to be healing the wound as if it was nothing," Hiashi murmured in amazement as he saw the wound start to close.

**Inside Naruto's Mindscape**

Naruto opened his eyes to find himself lying on his back, sunken up to his ear in shallow water. He quickly sat up in confusion and clutched at his chest, only to see none of the wound he supposedly suffered and his shirt remained intact. He had a look around and saw that he was in a long and wide hallway that seemed to go on forever into darkness on either side. The walls were old and cracking with dark red and blue piping snaking among them. He noticed the red pipes were glowing bright red compared to the blue ones.

"What is this? Is this where I went when I died?"

Confused, Naruto forced himself to stand up and shake some of the excess water off him. As he looked at either direction the large hallway stretched into, he could feel something tugging at him a little in one direction. Having nothing else to go on, he decided to follow the tugging.

After a short while, he saw the hallway open up into a giant room. Red and blue pipes covered nearly every inch of the walls on both sides and even the ceiling. He could feel a very powerful presence in this area. Walking further into the room, he noticed a giant set of iron bars blocking his progress further into the darkness beyond. A closer inspection revealed a paper with "Seal" written on it stuck high up on the middle bar. Naruto felt anxiety in every single inch of his body. Something told him this wasn't heaven or hell.

"**You catch on quick, boy,"** a loud and authoritative voice boomed through the large room.

Naruto yelped in surprise and fell back to land unceremoniously on his backside, splashing the shallow water everywhere. There was silence for a minute before the voice broke into a mirthful chuckle.

"**Haha…it has been a while since I had a good laugh. Please do not be frightened. We are in your mindscape and I wish to have a talk with you, Uzumaki Naruto," **the voice continued, rolling throughout the room like thunder. It took a while for Naruto to regain his composure at hearing and feeling the presence beyond the iron gate.

"O-ok…but…may I ask who you are since you apparently know my name?" the young boy carefully inquired upon the mysterious presence.

"**Respectful…I like that. I would tell you my true name soon but for now, I'm afraid you know me by another name. The humans out there call me Kyuubi no Yoko. The same Nine-tailed Demon Fox that the Yondaime Hokage supposedly killed, with one exception. I was actually sealed into you instead when you were a newborn. I am the reason why you were hated by most of the ignorant idiots you met so far in this ungrateful village,"** the now revealed Kyuubi spoke softly as the darkness seemed to lift inside the cage, revealing an enormous demon fox with red-orange fur all over and some black on its face around its eyes and ears. The fox was lying down facing Naruto directly, its arms crossed underneath its raised head. Its nine tails were spread out on the floor behind it, a few of them twitching absentmindedly. The face looked somewhat subdued, its bright red eyes looking down at the young boy as if analyzing for any reaction.

It took all Naruto had to keep from crapping his pants at the prospect of being face to face with the giant fox that the entire village feared and hated. Only reassured a little bit by the presence of the iron bars between the two, he regained his composure after several minutes. As Naruto looked up at the fox, who seemed to be waiting for what the boy would say, he had thought about what he would say to this demon. At first, he wanted to yell insults at the fox beyond the gate for being the reason he lived a painful existence until recently. But what would that change? The sealing already happened and he already lived through the worst of it. He could tell things would improve for him from now on as he made more friends. Right now, to him, it wasn't such a bad thing having a giant fox sealed inside him. He probably got some benefits from that, right? After taking a long moment to quell the shock of this revelation, he decided there was nothing to be done about anything right now anyway. He decided to ask some questions before forming some opinion about his tenant.

"**Thank you for not calling me a prisoner…even if it was the correct term in this case…and yes, you did get some benefits from having a 'giant fox' sealed inside of you,"** the Kyuubi suddenly spoke, as if the boy's thoughts were said out loud. Naruto flinched in surprise at that…then he remembered that he was in what the Kyuubi called his mindscape.

"It makes sense in this case. From these red pipes I see coming out from your side, you're basically paying rent with some of your chakra," the blond said, pointing at the pipes lining the walls. The fox only gave a small smile.

"So what happened that had me end up in here with you? The last thing I remember before coming here was having a creepy man in black kill me for saving a girl," Naruto asked, looking up at the giant fox with a cocked head.

"**When you were dying, I pumped some of my chakra through your system and it increased your healing rate. While I'm working on that, I decided to pull you into this room so we can finally meet face to face and have a discussion,"** the Kyuubi spoke with an annoyed tone at the end, as if it was going to confront the boy about something. Naruto gulped. He had a feeling he knew what the Kyuubi was pissed about. As if to signify the changing mood, the fox's massive tails started to move around, splashing the shallow water everywhere.

"**Now…I would like to tell you about my end in regards to how this seal works between us. As long as I am trapped inside you my chakra is absorbed little by little into your body and I cannot break out of the seal at any time without killing you," **the fox explained while pointing at the paper seal on the bar with one of its tails. **"While I'd admit I'm not too put out by that notion, I actually have to consider working with you and keeping you alive until the end of your life this time. The reason is this seal was designed so that if you died for any reason aside from old age..I die as well and it probably would be long and painful, too."**

Naruto winced. The fox got more agitated as it narrowed its now glowing red eyes at the cringing blond, bared all of its teeth, got up on all four legs, and its tails thrashed loudly behind it.

"**So imagine my anger when I watched you try to kill yourself four times two years ago and I desperately worked my ass off to keep the both of us…ALIVE. EVERY. GOD. DAMN. TIME!"** the all-powerful Kyuubi roared as it punctuated the last five words with an intense slam of one of its powerful tails onto the floor, shaking the entire room each time and causing large waves everywhere with the shallow water. The fox's angry roar knocked the boy off his feet and blew him back several feet into the choppy water.

After the outburst, the fox exhaled loudly and seemed to calm down as it returned to lying down, its eyes not glowing now. Naruto, while a little wary this time, simply stood up from the calming water and shook it off to face his tenant again while remaining silent.

"**You were lucky I decided to heal you this time. After what happened, I decided I wouldn't heal your idiotic ass ever again as long as you kept contemplating suicide. That would mean I'm trapped inside a weak container and I'd rather just die with you and deal with the hassle of coming back alive a few decades later. I almost considered not saving you this time since going up against an experienced shinobi the way you are now would be considered a form of suicide by many people, myself included,"** the Kyuubi smirked at Naruto's annoyed scowl at being called suicidal for doing what he thought was right. **"Still, you did do it to rescue that female child and you actually did not want to die so I decided to interfere and make a deal with you to help you get strong enough to keep me alive, as well as protect all of your precious ones, Uzumaki Naruto." **

Naruto became alarmed about the notion of making a deal with a demon, especially when it's with the most powerful being in existence. He decided to understand something before he would decide to say no or yes.

"**Go ahead and ask your questions."**

The Kyuubi snickered at seeing the boy face fault at having his mind read again.

"Damn it…anyway…I only have one question …why did you attack Konoha?" Naruto gulped as he saw the giant fox narrow its eyes. Apparently it was a sore subject. Its tails shifted some as it took a deep breath.

"**A man with the Sharingan ripped me out of my previous container and put me under his control with that accursed bloodline. I was then taken to your village and forced to rampage through it until your Yondaime Hokage came and sealed me into you and that's how we got here. I should warn you that man needed my power for something far beyond simply rampaging through some human village. That was before the Hokage stopped the man and released the control over me when I was sealed. He will return in the future to try and rip me out of you. I don't need to tell you that, with this seal, would result in certain death for us, boy,"** the Kyuubi said with an angry growl. Naruto narrowed his eyes at the prospect of being hunted in the future for what he contained. He decided to move on and worry about that later.

"That's all I need to know for now. I'm going to be fine with being your partner on this then."

The Kyuubi was surprised at this boy's carefree attitude about making a deal with a demon.

"**Aren't you going to ask what the terms were on this deal?" **

"I'll listen to the terms. As long as none of them has you stepping out of my seal and going nuts on this village, it should be reasonable," Naruto said with a foxy grin. The fox returned the same grin.

"**I'll tell you anyway so you won't bitch at me in the future about anything that comes up. Now, your benefits in this partnership are that you receive all of my help in making you much more stronger like a container of the Kyuubi no Yoko should be. That includes but is not limited to physical training, learning to control your chakra efficiently, receiving my fire affinity and several of my own personal fire justus, my knowledge of tactics and strategies, genjustus, taijustu stances, kenjustu stances, and, lastly, the ability to control your own tailed beast transformation after you've trained long enough. I will also help you with most of the genjustus cast upon you by dispelling them with my own charka. If you start now and work hard, you would be strong enough to beat most people by the time you reach 18,"** the Kyuubi had to hold back a smirk at seeing the boy's expression of wonder and amazement.

"**I have four terms of my own in this partnership. First, you unlock all of your senses to me so I can see, hear, smell, taste, and feel whatever you come across in the outside world since it gets boring in here. Up until now, I could only find out things about you by reading your memories. We'd also be able to talk without you having to come here every time. You also benefit by having your senses heightened even further thanks to my own senses merging with yours. You still have the right to cut the link any time you need the privacy." **

"Why should I care about my privacy if I'm going to trust you?"

"**Trust me….when you get to be…say…16…you'll want all the privacy you can get," **the fox said with a snicker. The blonde just cocked his head in confusion.

"**Next term, I would like for you to fix this mindscape so it won't be such a shithole to live in. It only takes a little practice to be able to change anything in this place so I'll help you with that when we have time. It'll also help with your training when you come into your mind to train while your body rests at night."**

Naruto replied with a quick nod, having no objection to that.

"**Third term, this one you may have difficulty accepting but you must do this. It's for both our sake or the deal's off, is that understood?"** the fox said with a serious gaze. Naruto gulped. The fox's expression suddenly switched from serious to sickeningly sweet as it held a finger up.

"**You must limit your ramen intake to only two times a week,"** the fox said in a sing-song voice that did not match the rows of sharp teeth as it smiled, baring them all. Naruto face faulted, having been pulled into the serious atmosphere a moment ago. The fox was clearly enjoying the look of horror creeping up on its container's face at the prospect of actually having to eat his beloved ramen like..like... a normal person should!

"What the hell, fox? What was with that joke you did just now and why do I have to cut down on the food of the gods?"

The fox bared its sharp teeth in a wide grin that made the fox look purely demonic and the boy involuntarily gulped.

"**I may be a demon, but I am also a fox, so it's my nature to enjoy jokes and tricks. You will provide plenty of entertainment by the way,"** the Kyuubi chuckled at Naruto's indignant "Oi!" before continuing.

**"****You should be glad I'm actually allowing you to eat any. This so-called 'food of the gods' you love and trust so much is the primary reason you're a shrimp for your age,"** the fox said, holding its hand up to show its pointer and thumb with very little space between them, as if to denote smallness. Naruto got a tick mark on his temple at the sight.

"**I can help you craft a strong body from here in combination with your extreme physical training, but I can only do so much without proper nutrition. It was a good thing you still occasionally visit your friends for dinner lately aside from your five meals of ramen every day otherwise you would be a malnourished prawn at this point,"** the fox finished with its pointer and thumb growing even closer together to punctuate the 'malnourished prawn' insult. Naruto developed another tick mark. He had to take a minute to calm himself down.

"Grr…dammit. I'll do it. I'll give up on that stuff if that's what it will take for me to get strong enough to protect my precious people!" the blonde declared more for himself than for the fox in front of him as if to steel his nerves at that horrible...horrible reality.

"**Very good. Before we move on, I forgot to mention that I'm female. You may call me by my real name Kurama. I just wanted to clear that up since I'm getting tired of you referring to me as 'it' in your mind,"** the fox now named Kurama dropped this bombshell as casually as if she was talking about the weather.

"What." was Naruto's intelligent reply as he stared up at her in shock. Kurama seemed to take offense to this.

"**Is there a problem with the most powerful creature in the world being of female nature?" **Kurama slowly ground out as the temperature in the room seemed to drop by a few degrees. Naruto straightened up, sweat pouring down his face.

"No, ma'am! It's just that…you have such a wonderfully deep voice so that's why I was confused."

The fox rolled her eyes at the failed attempt at flattery.

"**It's just the way I am. Do you expect a smaller version of me to pop out from some hidden curtain and say 'Pay no attention to the tiny fox behind the curtain' with a squeaky voice?" **she murmured in a sarcastic tone. She sighed at the boy's totally lost expression and waved her hand dismissively. **"Never mind…it was just an old expression I picked up many thousands of years ago. Moving on…" **

"**Naruto, this is the last term of our partnership. When I think you're strong and ready, I would like for you to go hunt down and kill the man who took control of me and made me attack your village. I doubt you have any issue with that considering he's responsible for everything that happened to you since then. If you succeed in that, I'll be content living out the remainder of your life inside you and I will swear not to have anything to do with Konoha and its allies when I get out. I just don't want to be sealed into another person," **Kurama finished dictating her terms and awaited the boy's reply.

"Before that, there's something I need to say to you, Kurama-san," Naruto said with a serious expression. The fox was wondering what he meant when her eyes widened at what she saw. The boy was on his knees and hands, dunking his forehead into the water to touch the floor in a classic submission posture.

"Kurama-san, I am sorry for when I tried to take my own life two years ago. While I did not know you were sealed inside me at that time, it did not excuse the fact that I could have killed you. Also…I want to thank you too. You saved my life and because of that I have been able to move on and work for a better life for me. My life could still be less shitty but I am growing happier every day. Thank you again," Naruto apologized in his most sincere voice possible.

Kurama was so stunned by this display that she didn't say anything for a minute. She finally found her voice and growled with an annoyed expression.

"**Get up from that pose and don't ever do that again for anyone! You are my container and partner and you do not bow down to anyone else…not even to me, is that understood!"** she growled out but her face settled into a more gentle expression as the boy picked himself off the ground. **"…But…you're welcome and apology accepted."**

The blonde boy gave out a million-watt smile as he walked up close to the bars and stuck out his hand through them. "Deal accepted. I expect you to work me hard, Kurama-sensei."

"**And I expect you to do me proud as my container, Uzumaki Naruto,"** Kurama said as she stuck one of her giant claws out to let the boy grip it on the very tip and they shook a little. After releasing and letting the comfortable silence settled in the air for a moment, the boy decided to say something that was on his mind.

"Sensei, did you do something with my memories two years ago? Apparently I was supposed to have these fake memories put into me so I would forget about what happened, but I knew right away they were fake and I still remembered everything,"

The giant fox put a finger to her muzzle as she seemed to be thinking for a moment.

"**I'm not quite sure about that. It could have had something to do with my chakra interfering with the effects of whatever that human male with the long blond ponytail did to your mind. If that's the case then, with my help, you could be immune to mental probing and torture. Another useful trait of our partnership." **

That got her a foxy grin from the boy. She then seemed to notice something in a different location.

"**Now, I sense something is going on outside so you may be waking up soon. I'm done healing your wound and only a few minutes passed out there. Be careful, as you'll be weak for a while. We will talk later when you're rested up, Naruto. See you later."**

"See you then, sensei!" the container replied as his waving form started to fade out.

Looking at the spot where the boy faded out, Kurama had to let a toothy smile grow on her face.

"**That boy…he'll surprise me many times, I'm sure." **

**Outside with the Twins and Hinata a Few Minutes Before**

Hiashi, Hizashi, and Hinata found themselves the only ones standing close to Naruto's body that was currently glowing bright red, tinting the night air with the color. Others had already run away in terror screaming about a demon fox coming loose, their oh-so-important Hyuuga pride and composure completely forgotten.

The three Hyuugas stayed rooted in place, staring transfixed at the beautiful but deadly red chakra slowly whirling around the boy's body.

"Father…Uncle…w-what is that?" Hiashi noticed his daughter asked that with no fear in her voice…. only open curiosity. He also saw his brother stiffen uncomfortably.

"I'm afraid I can't tell you that, my daughter. It is a secret only this child can tell you himself. I recommend waiting on that until you feel you have gained this boy's trust…that is if you wish to pursue a friendship with him," Hiashi replied to Hinata's disappointment at not finding out.

"Now then, we must prepare to greet the Hokage," the Hyuuga head said as he and Hizashi turned around and Hinata reluctantly followed suit, a little confused. The sight of the Hokage and six ANBUs jumping down onto the street from the air greeted them. The Third's face was grim as he surveyed the scene from the broken body of the black-clad shinobi, to the three Hyuugas, and finally to the glowing body of the Kyuubi Jinchuriki.

"What happened here?" the Hokage simply said but his tone did not hide his tension at seeing the Kyuubi's chakra floating around the boy's body.

A few minutes of explanations brought everyone up to speed. They were also dismayed to discover the kidnapper, when one of the ANBUs investigated the body, was the diplomat sent from Kumo. The Hokage rubbed his temples, as he'll have to deal with an international incident when word of this reaches Kumogakure.

In the meantime, three of the ANBUs stood guard in a triangle formation around Naruto as the red glow continued. After a few minutes of speaking, everyone noticed the red glow was starting to dim. Eventually the chakra shrank and shrank until they finally retreated into the boy's body. The Hokage held his breath for half a minute until he saw the boy stirring. The Hokage moved closer until he was just out of the boy's arm range.

"Naruto-kun? Is that you? Are you ok?"

Stirring, Naruto opened his eyes to see the very concerned face of his surrogate grandfather.

"JiJi-san, what are you doing here?" he murmured tiredly.

The Hokage let out a breath of relief. Only Naruto would call him that. It was the same boy he came to know and care for. He'll have to put off his discussion about the red chakra until he had enough time to speak alone with the boy soon. He saw the young Hyuuga step up next to the blonde boy.

"What's y-your name?" Hinata asked with barely any stuttering, surprising the Hyuuga brothers a little.

"Er..I-I-I'm Uzumaki Naruto. It's nice to meet you," the boy said with a tired and sheepish smile as he sat up.

"Well…Naruto-k-kun…my name is Hyuuga Hinata and I-I want to thank you for rescuing me. I'm glad you do not seem hurt anymore now," Hinata happily said before she quickly reached in for a hug. It was all Naruto could do to not jump in surprise at being touched...let alone being hugged. After getting used to it, he thought it felt very nice and warm. Hinata, on the other hand, was absolutely ecstatic. Both hid their disappointment at letting go of each other.

"I would like to see you again soon when you recover…if that's ok with my father," Hinata shyly said as she glanced at her father. Hiashi nodded slightly in approval before turning to his twin brother.

"Hizashi, please go back to the compound and let everyone know that all is well. Take my daughter with you too and guard her and Hanabi until I return," Hiashi requested of his younger brother. He got an affirmative nod in return and turned back to Hinata.

"My daughter, you need to go back to our quarters to check on your sister and get cleaned up. Await my return before you go to bed. I will remain with these people for a few minutes," Hiashi commanded of the little Hyuuga. She bowed her head to everyone and made her way back into the compound with Hizashi by her side.

Hiashi then kneeled down next to the tired boy.

"Uzumaki-san, my name is Hiashi and I am the head of my clan. I wish to express my heartfelt gratitude to you for saving Hinata. You are welcome to come by the compound any time should my daughter wish to meet with you. Speaking of that, it was very clever of you about how you alerted us to the kidnapping." Hiashi said with a twinkle in one of his eyes. Naruto had the decency to look sheepish.

"It was all I could think of. I've seen how protective parents are of their children, especially a father and his daughter, and I needed to get help as fast as possible, sir."

Hiashi nodded with a small amused smirk before he continued.

"In addition, if you desire any help with something, please come to me soon and we will discuss it. I'll do my best to provide you with solutions," the Hyuuga head spoke in his most sincere tone and bowed his head down slightly.

Naruto was caught unsure on what to do with this unexpected display from one of the most powerful and influential noblemen in the village. He almost flinched when Kurama's voice spoke quietly into his head.

'**Naruto. It's me…Kurama. Do not speak…only think your responses when you're talking to me, ok? Now…respond to him with respect. Make sure to use sama at the end of his name…try to be modest. We're going to need his support in the future if we want our lives to be a bit easier…its important we get it now.'**

'_Yes, sensei.'_

Naruto took a quick moment to gather himself before considering his response.

"Hiashi-sama, thank you for your generous offer. I just did what I had to do when I came across that guy, even if it wasn't your daughter in his hands. Anyone else would have done the same."

'**Excellent response, Naruto'**

"Nonsense, Uzumaki-san. You were there and that's all that matters now. The offer is available indefinitely. I shall be seeing you soon," Hiashi smoothly said as he stood up before inclining his head. "Have a good night and get some rest, Uzumaki-san." He then walked off to have a few words with the Hokage.

'**Now we have his support. Don't do anything to screw that up. Besides, that female child will grow up to be a good mate to you in the future,'** Kurama murmured offhandedly.

'_What's a mate?'_ Naruto swore he heard the giant fox face fault in his head.

'**N-never mind that. I'll tell you in the future. I keep forgetting you're just a seven-year old boy that's just a bit too mature for his age.'**

Naruto thought about inquiring further about that term before he noticed someone's terrifying presence washing over him. He creaked his head around and up to see his surrogate grandfather's peering face, his gaze deadly serious. The boy also noticed no one else were in sight around the two of them.

"Now…Naruto-kun…tell me what happened to you to have your wound miraculously healed by some red chakra," the Third said with a tone that would tolerate no lie or half-truth. Naruto gulped.

'_Oi…what do I say, sensei?'_

'**Sorry kiddo, you're on your own with this one. That guy scares the shit out of me too. Good luck!'** Kurama said quickly as she signed off for the night.

'_OOOOOIIII, FOOOX!' _screamed Naruto in his head before he slowly looked up to the Third again, trembling.

"Well then…please speak, Naruto-kun," the Third leaned in with a closed-eyes grin but behind the grin was a promise that unspeakable horrors would be wrought on Naruto if he did not satisfy The God of Shinobi with his explanation.

The blonde hero gulped loudly.

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**So what did you guys think of Naruto's first meeting with our lovable fox? Like how Hinata's kidnapping played out in this chapter? Do you like the somewhat more mellowed out Hiashi? He'll still be strict, but I like the idea of him being actually a better father to the two girls than in canon. **

**For the more detail-orientated of you guys, you will notice I did move the kidnapping incident from when Hinata was three in canon to when she's seven in this chapter. That's the big change I planned for her since I wanted her and Naruto to be actually friends early in their childhood instead of Hinata just watching over her crush throughout the academy years. She will still be shy and soft spoken but as you can see in her meeting Naruto, she's somewhat a bit more bold in rare moments. As for what will happen with Hizashi…sadly that will go on as in canon in the next chapter. Poor Neji will still be hung up on his rage and fate and everything, but the target of his rage will actually be different this time. You'll find out for yourself. **

**Now, I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Next two chapters will involve training time between Naruto and our favorite fox and also cover the fallout from the kidnapping attempt and early years in the academy. After that we should finally meet Temari and Anko. **

**Appreciate any review you guys!**


	3. Defying Fate Pt1

**Just a quick FYI: I tweaked the second chapter a little. You guys did not miss anything major...I just focused mostly on the talk between Naruto and Kurama to make it flow a bit better. Only the most detail-oriented would notice the differences between the original post and the new one, so no biggie.  
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**Originally, I was planning on releasing both this chapter and the next one as one chapter, but I just kept on writing and writing and found myself looking at 17,000 words for one chapter and I'm still not done. So I have decided that I'll release the first half now and then finish and tweak the second half some more since that part is still rough and raw. **

**I didn't think the Hyuuga Affair would become this big. I was going to have Naruto get started with the training and occasionally touch on how it was going with the Hyuugas, but for some reason I decided to become more interested in the Hyuuga Affair and pushed Naruto's training to the backburner at least until after this was over. I also took liberties with how I thought the Hyuuga compound looks inside since it was never really shown in its entirety, to my knowledge, at least, and thought it made sense in my head with the segregation between the Branch and Main. I hope the descriptions will satisfy you somewhat. Enjoy and watch out for the second half soon.**

**As always, leave reviews. ;-) **

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**WARNING: This story will contain mature language, sexual themes, and graphic depictions of violence and gore. **

**DISCLAIMER: I do not own Naruto or any of its characters.**

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**Chapter 3: Defying Fate Pt. 1**

**Hokage's Office, Next Morning**

The main office of Konohagakure's most powerful shinobi, the Hokage, was being occupied by only two people, the young blond-haired and whiskered boy Uzumaki Naruto and the Sandaime Hokage himself, Sarutobi Hiruzen. The boy was sitting in a chair in front of the Hokage's giant wooden desk, looking exhausted and about to fall asleep, having been kept from his precious bed all night due to Sarutobi's questions. The old man himself was sitting behind his desk, his elbows resting on it as he rubbed his temples and kept his eyes trained on his surrogate grandson. It was silent between them for 15 minutes aside from Naruto's occasional half-snore/half snort as he nodded off before jerking awake repeatedly. Despite that, Naruto was growing frustrated as the silence went on.

"…"

"….."

"…..."

"DAMN IT, old man! I told you everything, down to every single thing I remember ever since I was born! That proves I'm really Naruto! Please let me go home and sleep or at least kill me now! I don't care either way; I need to drop dead!" Naruto yelled having had enough of the silence and the old man's studying eyes. The old man sighed slowly and leveled his gaze at Naruto.

"I'm sorry, Naruto-kun. I just have to be absolutely sure you weren't being taken over by the Kyuubi. Even though you believe the story it…"

"'SHE'…the fox gets reeeally touchy about that," Naruto corrected with a smirk.

'**Oi!' **Kurama growled from inside Naruto's head.

'_You finally showed up, huh? Thanks a lot for bailing out on me, sensei," _Naruto thought then smirked mentally at his tenant's grumbling.

"….she told you about her being controlled, we have to be wary. She is still a demon after all. Though, I am…intrigued about how you would turn out if you allow her to supervise your training from now on," the Hokage admitted with a sigh. After another long moment between the two, the Hokage stood up to retrieve a fresh stroll and started writing.

"Ok…I will allow this but you must keep this a secret. Most people in this village will not take kindly to the thought of you being raised by the Kyuubi and they will take it upon themselves to rid this village of you if this gets out. You can confide in people you truly trust but I'd still be very selective about that too if I were you," the Third warned as he continued to scribble in the scroll.

"For now, you should work on your physical conditioning and learning to mold chakra until you start academy. When the first year ends, you will be escorted by some of my most trusted people, depending on who volunteers, to a secret training field with a shack far outside of the village during the three-month break. This will repeat after every academy year until graduation so you can safely practice using the Kyuubi's chakra among other things," the Hokage dictated before his expression turned deadly serious.

"Any other time until things change, you are not allowed to draw on any of the Kyuubi's chakra anywhere near or within the village unless you have my express permission, is that understood?" the Third Hokage narrowed his eyes at the boy. Naruto locked a serious gaze with the Hokage's own and he nodded once without hesitation. The Third nodded back, his visage relaxing.

"What are you going to do about the academy, Naruto-kun? I was planning to get you admitted early this year," the Hokage inquired curiously.

'**You should put off going to the academy for this year at least. You need a lot of physical and chakra training to use my chakra without hurting yourself. At this rate, it will take two years before I think you would be ready, which is right when the first three-month break should occur,' **Kurama suggested.

"I think I'll wait on that for now if that's ok with you, Jiji-san. I'll join when my friends enroll and they said they're waiting until next year," Naruto said after a moment's thought. The old man just nodded with a smile.

"Let me add that, for now, I would be happy to help provide you with training aids, some low-level jutsu scrolls, and some weapons should you need them in the future. Just come to me and we'll talk about that, ok? For now you will be allowed access to the 42nd Training Ground since no one is using that. You will need a special permit since you are not a shinobi yet," the Hokage finished writing in the scroll and called for an ANBU to appear.

"Take this to the people I listed on there. They'll understand," the Third commanded and the masked nin bowed as he took the scroll and disappeared in a swirl of smoke.

"I have GOT to learn that!" the boy bounced excitedly in the chair while the Hokage chuckled.

'**Naruto, ask the old fart if that training field will have some steep cliffs for climbing', **Kurama suddenly spoke and Naruto reluctantly relayed what the fox asked. Sarutobi had to smile. That fox knew what she was doing, after all.

"Yes, there is a large and deep ravine that should suit what you are looking for, Kyuubi-san. I will be sure to include a little something with the training aids when you are ready to have Naruto-kun start on that," the Hokage said.

Naruto was confused…. and somewhat scared as he saw his Jiji-san's knowing smile and he could feel the fox inside him grin wide. The Third cleared his voice.

"I apologize for keeping you here this long, Naruto-kun. I will let you go now as I have things to take care of about the kidnapping attempt last night. You also need to recover so come back in three days for your permit. Have a good day," Sarutobi said with a polite dismissal. The blond boy just nodded and quickly ran out of the room.

The God of Shinobi sighed tiredly as he turned in his chair to look out the window behind him over his village. He knew the village would be buzzing loudly when the news of the Hyuuga kidnapping attempt reaches everyone.

"What are you going to do now, A-san?"

**Naruto**

'_So, what do I do, sensei?'_ Naruto thought as he sped down a street toward his apartment, a little embarrassed with getting stares from the villagers this time. He was still shirtless after he lost his shirt last night.

'**As the old fart said, you need rest. Just get something to eat that's not ramen and go home to sleep all day and night. We will get started on organizing your training tomorrow morning,'** Kurama said thoughtfully. Naruto was a little crestfallen since he wanted to get started right away but he'll trust her. He stopped by a market that was forced to treat him as a normal customer thanks to the Hokage's interference and bought two disposable bowls of cereal and milk. Arriving home, he quickly ate then dived onto his bed, already asleep as soon as his head hit the pillow.

**Kumogakure, Raikage's Office**

The very large, dark-skinned, and muscular Yondaime Raikage grunted as he lifted a dumbbell weighing 500 lbs. while sitting in his desk's chair. A, currently the most powerful shinobi in the Village Hidden in the Clouds, was deep in thought as he wondered how the Hyuuga kidnapping that he ordered went. He did not have his now-deceased father's obsession with getting more bloodline limit users to strengthen Kumo's military might, but he had to admit he was curious about what adding the abilities of Byagukan could do for his military.

Kumo is not well known for its sensing and tracking capabilities. Hell, A only found just one amazing sensor in C in the new crop of shinobi coming out since the last Great War. When this peace treaty negotiation came up, the Raikage decided to take a chance and made the order to sneak one of his "retired" Jonins into Konoha as the ambassador. Now all he could do is just wait for any news to come back to him.

There was urgent knocking at the office's door. A carefully put the dumbbell down onto the floor, which creaked loudly under the weight, since he didn't want to get berated by his secretary for destroying the Raikage tower again. After a loud "Enter!", a Chunin in charge of the messenger hawks burst in, breathing hard with a scroll in hand.

"Sir, there's bad news from Konoha!"

"What?" the Raikage grunted as he stepped up to the Chunin and took the scroll into his hands. Opening it quickly, he started reading. A's mood began to darken with each line he read and, upon reaching the end, he crushed the scroll in his closed fist and yelled in rage, slamming one of his massive fist into his desk. The hit obliterated the desk into splinters. The Chunin stood stock still, as if making a single movement would alert the enraged Raikage to his presence. A took a deep breath as the dust from the desk cleared. He wasn't going to give up on this. Fortunately, the treaty that Kumo and Konoha signed was real and binding despite the true nature of the ambassador. He'll make use of that if he could find a way.

"Chunin! Send a message to our spies in Konoha. Have them find a copy of the report on exactly what happened with our guy! I need all the details including the witnesses' files…fastest speed!" the Raikage roared in a tone that would tolerate no hesitating. The messenger Chunin quickly nodded and ran out of the office like a bat out of hell.

**Early Next Morning, Same Location**

The Raikage entered the office after finishing his usual early morning workout regime. He sighed in disgust as he remembered how he had to deal with the council yesterday and spent all day assuring these pompous asses that he would find a way to get something out of this fiasco. He had almost felt like using his **Lariat** on all of them. A sat behind his new desk to absent-mindedly lift some dumbbells and shake out evil thoughts about 'pompous asses'. After about thirty minutes, there was a knock at the door. Another "Enter!" revealed the same messenger Chunin.

"Raikage-sama, we got the information from our spies in Konoha. These were sealed into the hawk's message scroll," the man said as he presented just two scrolls. The Raikage raised an eyebrow.

"Did they not have time to gather more files for the other witnesses?"

"No sir. There was only one legitimate witness at the time of our ambassador's death. There were two others present but they were the clan head and his daughter so their witness accounts could be held as biased."

The Raikage raised his eyebrows at this interesting development and grabbed the two scrolls then sent the Chunin out. He laid the scrolls out on his desk and took his time reading over the detailed account of exactly how it happened, and then looked over the witness' file. A then raised an eyebrow at the history of this witness. His lips started to form a smirk as he reread the Konoha ANBU's report. It seemed to have left things out in some areas. Apparently there was some secret involved with that incident that they cannot carelessly put on an official report for even all their shinobi with high clearance to see. No matter, it will be their downfall. Without the whole truth, this report suddenly had holes. It was a long shot but the Raikage would take this. He buzzed for his secretary to appear in the office.

"Get me the real ambassador to Konoha and clear my schedule for the morning. I have a lot of things to discuss with him," the Raikage ordered. The secretary bowed and made arrangements. A then leaned back into his chair and sighed.

'_This is truly an underhanded tactic. I almost actually feel bad about this…almost….but I need to succeed in this to make the inevitable international shitstorm from the attempted abduction worth it,' _the Raikage started to grin._ "If this works, we may actually get an intact body of the strongest and most pure male Hyuuga. That would provide a lot of solid results in our research compared to a female Hyuuga who was viewed as weak by her own clan. _

**Same time in Konohagakure**

"That was a great day to rest! You're right about me needing that, sensei," Naruto murmured out loud as he yawned and stretched his body as much as he could in his bed on this early morning. He slept most of the day away yesterday, only getting up to eat and relieve himself.

'**I am always right, my student. I do have one question…what is that abomination you have on your head?' **Kurama said in his head, curious about the interesting looking nightcap Naruto was wearing. It looked like an odd toothy monster eating the boy's blond hair.

"Oi…don't mock Mr. Nightcap. It protects me from bad dreams and keeps my head warm. Besides, it's a gift from Jiji-san," Naruto defended as he stepped out of the bed to stretch some more.

'**Nevertheless, my container shouldn't be wearing something that stupid and childish,' **retorted the fox. Naruto just shrugged as he pulled the nightcap off and started undressing for shower.

"You do realize I'm just seven, right?" the boy deadpanned.

'**So? Foxes are already adults by the time they're seven,' **Kurama tried pitifully. Naruto just laughed out loud.

"Your fox logic won't work on a human…and the hat stays, fox-sensei," the boy smirked as he heard an annoyed snort in his head.

After showering and eating an actual healthy breakfast of milk, fruit, toast, and oatmeal, Naruto dressed in his training outfit of a black loose sleeveless shirt with the Uzumaki spiral drawn in red on the back and white shorts.

"_So what do I need to start with, sensei?"_ the boy thought as he stretched to make his body loose.

'**Unfortunately, your body is pitifully underdeveloped thanks, once again, to your hopefully former ramen addiction.' **Kurama paused for an angry snort from her container before continuing. ** 'Any real physical conditioning will just break your body at this point. We will build up your endurance and muscles as you eat healthier before we start on any actual conditioning and your shinobi training. It won't take much time, as I will be working to make efficient use of your body's new nutrition. It shouldn't more than two months for you to be in good enough shape. Until then, we'll start with something easy. Maybe….ten laps around the entire village, and two sets of 50 crunches, push-ups, and squats each two laps.' **the fox couldn't help but smirk evilly at the boy's horrified expression when he heard about the 'easy' exercises. '**We will flesh out more of your exercises from there as time goes on. Now get going and no talking back! Chop chop!' **

The hidden ANBUs guarding Naruto eventually wrote in their daily report that they heard their charge loudly cursing 'some damn fox' as the boy left his apartment for his long morning of tort-…exercises.

**Later**

It was noon when our blond hero was dragging himself up the stairs to his apartment.

'_Damn fox, you put me through hell today,' _Naruto whined as he painfully fished for his keys in his shorts' pocket.

'**I know…I particularly enjoyed your creative use of the human language on what you were going to do to me when I asked for two more laps. I'll be looking forward to more tomorrow, boy,' **Kurama said, snickering at the memory. Naruto let out a pained groan as he opened the door, walked in, and fell forward flat on the hallway's floor. A moment later, the two ANBU guards hidden next to the still-open front door could hear snoring. Two huge sweat drops formed in the air above where the two guards were hiding. After listening to the boy's snoring for five minutes, the guards shrugged and one of them appeared into view to gently close the front door.

An hour later, the blond woke up with his stomach grumbling. He opted to make use of the first of his two allowable ramen meal for the week. He cleaned himself up and headed back out, wincing in slight pain with his sore body.

Arriving at Ichiraku Ramen, he was greeted by one of the few people that saw him for who he really was, Teuchi…. owner of Naruto's favorite ramen stand.

"Hey there! How's our hero doing? !" The middle-aged man in the kitchen boisterously said as he saw the little blond sit at the counter. Naruto looked around to check he was actually the one being spoken to and cocked his head in confusion.

"Hero? Did I do something, old man?" the boy innocently said. Teuchi laughed uproariously.

"You sure did! You're too modest or have you forgotten about how you saved that Hyuuga heiress the other night? The whole village's abuzz about it," the cook clarified. Naruto smacked a fist into the other hand in realization.

"Oh…oooh! That one! Actually I forgot about that…I was sleeping all day yesterday and I was busy with my sensei from hell all morning," Naruto said in an embarrassed chuckle while rubbing the back of his head.

'**I heard that, boy,' **scoffed the sensei from hell.

A cute brown-haired teenage girl came into view from the back. As she saw the familiar mop of sun-kissed blond hair, she let out a happy cry and jumped over the counter, with speed that would shock an elite Jonin, to snatch the boy into a bone-crushing hug before he could say anything.

"My little brother's a hero! You were so awesome when you stopped that evil Kumo shinobi all by yourself and saving that Hyuuga heiress! Maybe she'll fall in love with you and you two will get married…" the brown-haired girl waitress rambled on as she squeezed her surrogate brother harder.

"Ayame-chan…you're killing our favorite customer, you know," the amused Teuchi pointed out to his daughter.

"Huh?" was her reply before Ayame looked down to see the poor boy's blue face suffocating between her already impressive breasts. She yelped and pulled Naruto away from her chest before apologizing profusely. Naruto took in a breath and chuckled at Ayame, his sister-figure who also saw him for who he was instead of the Kyuubi.

"It was no big deal, Ayame-neechan. Just happened to be in the right place at the right time," Naruto said with a hand on the back of his head before continuing.

"Why would anyone want to marry me though? I have the-" Naruto quickly clapped a hand over his mouth at the slip. Teuchi and Ayame caught on and were stunned.

'**Moron…,' **Naruto's inner voice grumbled.

"You….you know now?" the older cook leaned in to inquire carefully while Ayame looked on with a saddened expression. Naruto sighed and nodded. A heavy silence fell on them before Teuchi smiled broadly.

"Don't worry, what happened with the Hyuugas is only the beginning. Some of the villagers are starting to form new opinions of you and it won't be long before everyone sees you for who you truly are. If you keep this up when you grow up, I wouldn't be surprised if you have many friends...and maybe many girlfriends," the old man said the last part with a small perverted grin and laughed before Ayame conked him on the head with a ladle.

"Don't pay attention to him…even though it's true you'll be breaking many girls' hearts everywhere you go when you're older," Ayame slyly said. Naruto looked horrified.

"Why would I do that? ! I would hurt them if I broke their hearts!"

His childish misunderstanding caused both Ichirakus to laugh uproariously and it took them a while to settle down before asking an embarrassed Naruto for his order. He felt better immediately when he was told his order was on the house for his heroics.

After eating three bowls, he wondered for a minute about what he was going to do today. '_Maybe I should stop by the Naras and see if Shikamaru's home.' _Naruto thought before jumping off the stool and walked in the direction of the clans' district.

A thirty-minute walk found Naruto in front of the Nara compound. However, he was dismayed to discover the main family had gone out of town for a few days into the clan's giant nature reservation to catalog the deer population for research, as well as gathering antlers for medicine and other things. The blond let out a sigh and muttered 'troublesome' before leaving. On the way, he passed by the Hyuuga compound's main gate and he was reminded that Hinata wanted to see him again soon. He shrugged on that thought and decided it couldn't hurt to see if she was available. Stopping in front of the gate's two guards, he made his request.

"Um, my name's Uzumaki Naruto. I have been asked by Hyuuga Hinata to stop by when I recovered and I was wondering if she was available."

The two guards narrowed their eyes at the blond boy and he had to hold back a gulp. Finally one of them spoke up.

"Uzumaki-sama, please remain here while my partner go inside to inquire about your request," the one on the left spoke professionally while the other slipped inside the compound, apparently to speak to someone. A few minutes of terse silence passed between Naruto and the remaining guard until the front gate creaked open to let out the other guard and one more man. Hyuuga Hizashi stepped up to Naruto and bowed slightly. The surprised Naruto nervously returned the bow.

"H-h-hello, Hiashi-sama. W-we met the other night. I apologize if my stopping by here unannounced took you out of your busy schedule," Naruto respectfully said, mistaking the man in front of him for his identical twin brother, the Hyuuga clan head. Hizashi could not resist an amused smirk.

"My sincerest apologies, Uzumaki-sama. We have not officially met and it was dark the other night, but please do forgive the confusion. I am not Hiashi-sama, but his twin brother, Hizashi," the man paused as the boy flinched in surprise and confusion. The boy allowed himself to have a closer look and he did notice that this man was wearing a hitai-ate on his forehead compared to Hiashi being completely free of any headwear.

"I was asked to greet you and take you to our meeting hall since that is where my niece is being trained by her father," Hizashi said as he bowed and stepped aside for Naruto to enter the compound. Naruto stayed where he was, a little nervous.

"Um, Hizashi-sama…if they're busy maybe I shouldn't bother them," the boy tried to respectfully back out.

"Nonsense, Uzumaki-sama. They are about to finish and Hinata-sama will have some free time afterward. In the meantime, I'd be happy to escort you until then," insisted Hizashi. Naruto reluctantly gave up and went inside with his escort.

The sight Naruto saw as he entered through the gate flabbergasted him. He was immediately surrounded by a gorgeous garden on each of his sides and a long and thin reflecting pool forward of their position. The pool was filled with beautiful and colorful koi fish. The two large gardens were each displaying all kinds of gorgeous white and black flowers painstakingly arranged to look like a giant version of the clan's symbol. One flower out of alignment would ruin either of the displays. As Naruto followed Hizashi around to the left side of the long reflecting pool, the gardens opened up for him to see many impressive traditional Japanese houses littering the entire estate. The long and narrow reflecting pool seemed to almost split the entire compound estate in two with only several ornate wooden bridges allowing access to either side. Naruto seemed to notice the odd discrepancies between the houses on the left side of the pool and the ones on the right. He also noticed that he was being taken to a giant traditional meeting hall at the other end of the pool, opposite the main gate.

"Hizashi-sama…" Naruto tried to speak before Hizashi politely interrupted him with a shake of his head.

"Uzumaki-sama, please do not refer to me with 'sama'. I am not the head of this clan. My brother is," Hizashi said with a small smile.

"Ok.. Hizashi-san then…I may be rude asking this, but I noticed that there are a lot of small houses on this side of the pool while there are only a few buildings on the other side, yet they're bigger and fancier. Is there a reason for that?" Naruto inquired as he continued to see the differences. Hizashi smiled at the boy's observation. Usually a child like him would be staring into the pool the whole way, not even bothering to look around and notice the dark shadows of the clan. Even the more mature and adult guests were only interested in the more luxurious offerings.

"Uzumaki-sama, since you may be coming here to visit more often, I am inclined to give you a brief history of this clan. That way you will understand some of the things we do here," Hizashi spoke as the two walked slowly along the pool to the meeting hall.

"Since this village was founded and our clan moved here, our dojutsu, the Byakugan, was revered about as much as the Uchiha clan's Sharingan. In the beginning, we had to deal with our enemies trying to capture members of this clan to put the Byakugan to their own use…which is what you just saw happen with the Kumo nin the other night. Almost immediately, the clan leaders of that time came up with a seal. The seal would effectively protect our Byakugan from capture by permanently sealing our eyes if they were removed forcefully or if death occurs. It worked brilliantly. With this method, it was almost impossible for any enemy to capture the Byakugan. It incurred a high cost, however," Hizashi paused to take a breath. Naruto was paying full attention.

"What cost is that?" the boy wanted to know more.

"Total subversion for the ones who has the seal. There are two groups in this clan: Branch Family and Main Family. Whoever has the seal belongs to the larger and more populous Branch family of this clan," Hizashi said as he pointed to his left at the large collection of small houses then pointed to his right across the pool at the more luxurious houses. "Those who don't have the seal belong to the smaller but more powerful Main family and they are in charge of the entire clan. The main family members usually are raised to control this clan, deal with politics, and other more important functions. The Branch members are allowed some freedom but they must obey whatever any Main member commands. If disobedience occured, the main member may decide to use a special hand seal to incur unbearable agony as punishment on the branch member, and it can even lend to mental damage or death. Ever since the beginning, we have been separated; the Branch family forever serving and protecting the Main family," Hizashi finished and looked down to see an upset looking Naruto.

"That's too cruel…no clan should have to be like that! I never had a family or a clan, but I can't imagine a relative being forced to serve me. We should all be equals," Naruto murmured with a sad expression before looking up at Hizashi.

"Hizashi-san, you're a main family member then. I mean, your brother is the clan head so it makes sense, right?"

Hizashi shook his head with a sad smile to Naruto's shock.

"I am of the Branch family and I serve my brother. The seal is here," Hizashi said as he pointed to his forehead covered by the hitai-ate. "My brother came into this world a few minutes before me and that was the difference between us because we are even in skills, intelligence, and other areas. The Main family groomed him while I was branded with the seal. In addition, because I was a few minutes late and ended up on this side of the pool, my son, despite his potential as an incredible Hyuuga prodigy, was automatically branded. Hinata-sama and her sister will have the same fate as my brother and me. When Hanabi-sama is old enough, the clan elders will determine who will be the true heiress of the clan and the other will be moved to the Branch family," Hizashi explained and he could see the little boy was about to have an angry outburst. The man decided to interfere by holding a placating hand on the boy's shoulder to calm him down. Naruto had to hold his anger in and then he looked downcast and shook his head in frustration.

"Uzumaki-sama, I am sorry this has upset you but I wanted you to understand a little of this clan's traditions when you see something here you may object to. Whatever happens here inside these walls, it generally would be best to not interfere and leave it for the clan's business. Now…we are here," Hizashi pointed out as they arrived at the main meeting hall's large double doors.

Hizashi opened one of the two doors, allowed Naruto to step inside, and followed him in. They moved down a hallway and they could hear grunts and fists striking flesh. Hizashi opened another set of door and Naruto finally caught sight of the training area. It was apparently set up as either a meeting or dueling hall with three cascading rows of wooden benches surrounding a very large flat square area set against the back wall. Naruto could see a small indigo-haired girl, in a black skin-tight training outfit, attempting to land a hit on a tall man wearing white robes in the middle of the ring. They were obviously sparring. The boy felt a hand on his shoulder and looked up to see Hizashi nodding his head toward a particular area of seating. Naruto complied and followed his escort to sit farthest from the sparring so as not to distract either of the combatants.

Naruto could only watch in amazement as he watched Hinata try to hit her father with a flurry of fast (at least for him) and precise strikes aimed at the limbs. He was particularly impressed when Hiashi knocked Hinata to the ground hard with a nasty downward palm strike to her cheek, but she still got up to keep trying to land a hit on her father. After a few more minutes of sparring, Hiashi suddenly put a hand up, signifying that the spar has ended. Hinata and her father bowed to each other.

"You are improving, daughter. You have managed to close one of my tenketsus earlier than the last time," Hiashi said as he seemed to flex his left hand. "Your stance needs work, however. Practice it and we will train again tomorrow afternoon. For now, I see you have a guest," Hiashi said as he looked up at Naruto and Hizashi. Hinata was confused for a minute until her lavender eyes finally locked with blue eyes after searching the meeting hall.

Her only reply was "Eep!" as she instinctively hid behind her father's legs. Hiashi and Hizashi exchanged amused looks while Naruto was wondering what was wrong with Hinata after her complete 180 from a fighting badass to a bumbling introvert.

"Now, you shouldn't be rude. Don't be shy and greet your guest properly," Hiashi smirked as he gently pushed his daughter around to his front. Hinata was losing her nerves and her eyes were looking at anything in her sight except for Naruto himself. Hizashi gently nudged Naruto to get the boy's attention. He then motioned with his hand for the boy to get closer to the girl and her father. He complied, making his way down the stairs to the main floor to stand face to face with a very nervous Hinata, who still could not look him in the eyes. Hiashi left them alone to talk some things over with his brother.

"Er…hello Hinata! I stopped by here to let you know I'm all okay. I thought you'd like to know that. By the way, that was some cool fighting you did! What was that called?" Naruto curiously inquired. Hinata blushed at having her fighting being called 'cool'.

"A-ano….w-we train with the G-gentle Fist style. We use it to strike w-with chakra to c-cause internal damage instead of external like most other fighting stances," Hinata bravely said, but still unable to look him directly in the eyes.

"That's incredible! I guess that's why I saw that Kumo guy fall apart even though there was no damage on the outside. Your dad was really awesome!" Naruto said before he remembered something.

"Wait…when I met you three months ago at that playground, you could have fought those three bullies off, could you?" The question made Hinata flinch visibly and a cloud formed over her head.

"I'm sorry, N-naruto-kun…I-I just don't like h-hurting people if I c-could help it," the white-eye girl mumbled as she looked down at the ground while pushing her two index fingers together.

"Well, that's no good. I would hate for you to be hurt and if you could defend yourself, you should do it," Naruto said with a serious expression and his deep blue eyes became more focused. Hinata could not help but blush at that.

"I-I suppose you're right. I'll try my b-best next time," Hinata looked up with a shy smile. Naruto gave one of his trademark foxy grins and nodded in approval. Things then fell silent between the two children.

"So…your uncle told me you have some free time after this. Would you like to play together or something?" Naruto tried to offer after a moment of awkward silence between the two.

"Ano…I-I'd like that. Just let me clean up and g-get changed," Hinata replied with another blush and quickly walked toward the changing rooms. Naruto looked after her departing figure until she was no more before he turned to the twin brothers.

"Hiashi-sama and Hizashi-san, was that really the same person that hugged me out of nowhere the other night? Maybe she's got a twin like you two?" Naruto curiously inquired as he was pointing in the direction of Hinata. The two brothers exchanged amused grins.

"I will admit that was a very rare occurrence for my daughter. She is very shy and unwilling to stand up for herself in most situations. That was why I was intrigued when I was told she actually struggled to get out of the Kumo nin's grip before you rescued her," Hiashi admitted. The blond boy put a finger to his chin as he became deep in thought.

"She didn't do anything like that until she saw me sneak up behind the nin. I wonder why she suddenly tried so hard at that moment?" Naruto innocently said, as he looked lost in thought. The two brothers raised an eyebrow each as Hinata picked that moment to return in a simple pink kimino. After some small talk, the two children excused themselves to go play together elsewhere and the two brothers were left alone.

"That little…he is already stealing my daughter's heart and he does not even realize it. I should teach him a lesson," Hiashi suddenly murmured to his twin brother in an annoyed tone. Hizashi smirked a little.

"He is only seven years old, brother. I doubt Hinata-sama realizes it as well. We should just let them grow up and find out themselves," Hizashi advised and heard his brother let out a small sigh.

"I am not looking forward to my daughter's teenage years. If Hinata is anything like Hitomi was, she would only remain shy until she decides one day to do what it took to get and keep her man. I should not say this as her father, but I am not betting on Uzumaki-san's chastity lasting long," Hiashi said in a resigned tone. Hizashi had to smile at the memory of his brother's deceased wife.

"Not only that, but imagine the headaches our elders will give you when these two become closer," Hizashi pointed out playfully and enjoyed seeing one of his brother's eyes twitch slightly at the mention of the elders.

"That comes with the territory of being the clan head, I suppose. However, have you noticed something about Uzumaki-san?" Hiashi inquired, changing the subjects a little.

"Yes, brother. He looks like a young version of the Yondaime Hokage and his somewhat mischievous nature reminds me of Uzumaki Kushina...Brother! ! You don't suppose…? !" Hizashi would have completely lost his calm at the implications if he weren't shocked into silence upon seeing a very rare full-blown smirk form on Hiashi's lips. He looked truly devious.

"If you remember, we had good relations with Minato-san, and we were privy to the fact that he and Kushina-san were in love and secretly married. You should also remember that we have not seen Kushina-san anywhere in the village for about six months until the Kyuubi attack. That day, we had heard the news of her dying along with the Yondaime…on the same day that Naruto-san was born. It is possible to understand that if she were actually pregnant with that child, she would have kept any sign of showing hidden until after birth for security concerns. One last thing that could make this more believable…we knew Minato-san personally. Would he really have used someone else's newborn…even an orphan…to seal the Kyuubi? I can only see him trusting only his own child to carry the burden," Hiashi finished his deduction under his younger brother's growing astonishment.

"Brother…if that is true…," Hizashi sputtered before his older brother held a hand up for silence.

"It is just speculation without solid evidence. We should keep this information hidden for now. This can be used as a bargaining chip against the elders should they object to my daughter's growing involvement with 'the demon brat'. They will not be able to resist the prospect of having our clan linked with the powerful traits of the lost clans of Uzumaki and Namikaze. This is all for my daughter's happiness should she wish to pursue Uzumaki-san in the future."

Hizashi allowed himself to regain his composure and he formed a smirk of his own at this devious plan. He was curious about something though.

"Brother, you seem quite convinced that Hinata-sama may choose Uzumaki-sama as her lover in the future even though they are just seven years old and just met each other recently," Hizashi asked of his older brother. Hiashi just closed his eyes and allowed a tiny grin.

"Just call it a hunch," Hiashi vaguely said as his thoughts went back to when he met Hitomi at age nine. Hinata was so much like her mother it almost scared Hiashi.

**Two Hours Later**

Naruto could be seen standing outside the Hyuuga compound's gate exchanging goodbyes with Hinata and Hizashi with promises of visiting again soon. As he walked away, he was happy about how things went with Hinata. She was a little weird with all the blushing and stuttering but she was really nice and he could see himself being friends with her. He found it funny that she was clueless about the games that other kids played outside the walls such as "Tag" and "Ninja". He easily won at "Tag" but was rather humbled playing "Ninja" with Hinata as she kept easily finding him with her Byakugan. _'Note to self: don't play "Ninja" with any Hyuuga.' _

'**Naruto, did you check out that Hyuuga girl's body when she was training?' **Kurama asked from Naruto's mind before she almost smacked herself in the face for asking such a loaded question.

'_Yeah…what about it?' _Naruto replied, not understanding anything. The fox sighed in relief that her container was still young and naïve.

'**Bless your naiveté, boy. Anyway, that is how a properly developed body looks. Her clan was focused on taijustu training and proper nutrition from the early age. She was fast, limber, and agile and she could kick your ass eight different ways in the first minute with the way you are right now,' **Kurama said as a matter-of-fact. Naruto had to bitterly agree with her assessment of his current condition.

"**In your case, you have a natural disposition toward strength rather than speed like her. That is not to say we can't make you fast, but your physical attacks will be devastating when you can fully utilize it. In two months, we will work strength into your body but also make sure you stay as fast and agile as your body would allow. For now, just focus on your exercises until then.'**

Naruto nodded his affirmative before he had another thought.

'_Sensei, how do you know so much about human training methods?'_

'**I was not always a monster who razes villages to the ground for no good reason, you know. I did observe humans in various forms throughout my long life, and while I was trapped in my two previous containers, I had a good and up-close look at how shinobi train,' **the fox explained.

'**That reminds me…we will need to get you started on studying history, tactics, math, human anatomy, and some science. Every day after the morning exercises, when you are not busy, you will go to the library and spend the afternoon studying the books I pick out for you," **Kurama said seriously as Naruto flinched in shock at the prospect of having to read anything without pictures.

'_First you take away my ramen, then you destroy my body, and now you want to bore me to death? !" _

'**Oh stop whining like a baby fox! A strong body works the best with a strong mind. A clever tactic you study now may save your life later when you remember it in the heat of a battle. You can effectively damage any human body with as little force as you need if you know where exactly to strike and what amount of pressure to apply. Studying famous shinobi and clans now may help you later if you ever encounter any of these shinobi or their offspring, since specialty jutsus are generally passed down. These were just the few of many benefits of having knowledge,' **the fox lectured. Naruto didn't want to admit it at all, but he knew she was absolutely right.

'**Besides, it's only for the first couple months as you build your body up to acceptable levels. After that we will get more practical and you'll only have to read just one or two books per week in addition to what they may teach you in the academy,' **Kurama allowed.

Naruto nodded in resignation as he continued the walk back home.

**Two Days Later**

The past two days had been quiet. The only thing exciting that happened was when Naruto was kicked out of the library on his first visit. The Hokage immediately appeared afterward though and 'kindly' asked for an explanation from the terrified librarian. When she could not provide an adequate response, the boy was allowed back in. The librarian was also subtly reminded that she might be called in to 'talk' with Ibiki-san of the Interrogation Department to provide her supposed 'reasons' the next time she tries something again with Naruto. The librarian swore to never even look at Naruto in the wrong way since that day.

'_I guess studying history isn't so bad. The Battle at the Kannabi Bridge was pretty awesome!' _Naruto mentally said to the fox as he was walking toward the Hokage tower from the library.

'**Glad to see you're taking well to your exercising and studying,' **approved the fox in his head.

'_You work fast, sensei. I can already feel my body changing,' _Naruto thought as he flexed his arms some, noticing a little bit more muscle as he entered the Hokage tower and started to walk up the stairs. He noticed a lone figure walking down the stairs from the top. He then became alarmed when he saw the Kumo's cloud insignia on the man's armband. The man was wearing the most arrogant and victorious smirk the young boy has ever seen so far on anyone. The Kumo man did not pay the wary blonde boy any notice as he continued down the stairs and out the building with Naruto staring holes in the man's back. He spit on the floor where that man walked and continued up.

Something was wrong. Naruto could feel it with each step he took. There were waves of heavy pressure in the air and it kept crashing into the boy and getting heavier as he got closer to the Hokage's office. By the time he reached the landing, he saw the secretary by the office's door was holding on to her desk with white knuckles and trembling…scared out of her wits. The boy himself felt like running away down the stairs and all the way out of the village, never to return.

'**This is that old fart's killing intent. He's seriously pissed,' **the fox calmly clarified.

'_I'd say! I want to faint and he's not even directing it at me! I think it had something to do with that Kumo guy. I've never seen Jiji-san this angry. Also…it doesn't sound like this is bothering you one bit,' _Naruto inquired of his tenant, who just scoffed.

'**Please…this is like a gnat threatening a fully grown elephant,' **the fox said dismissively.

'_Says the one who left me to Jiji-san's mercy the other night when he was asking 'nicely' about us,' _huffed Naruto.

'**In my defense, that smile was scarier than any one's killing intent and I am looking at the world from a small human boy's perspective, not from a giant fox able to squash tiny humans with just my pinky,' **Kurama reasoned.

The killing intent in the air slowly lifted, to the relief of the secretary and the blond boy. A long moment of heavy silence passed before Naruto brought an index finger up.

"I don't suppose this is a good time to visit Jiji-san, Tamae-san?" Naruto tried to say in good humor. The plain-looking brown-haired Chunin, doing secretary duties this week, violently shook her head. (A/N: Just a throwaway OC. There is no actual Tamae in canon.)

"You're kidding me, right? You just felt that too! I like you too much to let you go in there just after that, Naruto-san!" warned Tamae. The boy just nodded his head and turned back to the direction he came from.

"I suppose so. I'll see you tomorrow, Tamae-san," Naruto said over his shoulder as he disappeared down the stairs.

'_Now what, sensei?' _

'**Now we find something else to do. There is no hurry in going to that training field anyway. How about we repeat what we just did this morning for the evening? You should be able to handle that now," **Kurama said as the boy winced at the prospect of more exercising.

On the other side of the door, the Hokage felt Naruto's presence grow dim as he left the building.

'_I'm sorry, Naruto-kun, but other things are on my mind at this moment,' _Sarutobi thought as he sat in his chair and went back over the conversation that just happened with the Kumo ambassador.

**Fifteen Minutes Earlier**

"….Would you repeat that again! ?" the Third ground out with barely constrained anger at the man standing in front of him, the new ambassador from Kuro. The man remained stoic, despite trembling violently on the inside from the powerful Hokage's anger. A good politician has to bluff, after all.

"You heard me. Under the guidelines of our new peace agreement, we demand reparations for the wrongful death of one of our most prized retired shinobi. You also wrongfully did an autopsy on him and certainly have learned all of the body's secrets by now. The only way the Raikage will be satisfied is if we are allowed to retrieve an intact body of the man responsible for our ambassador's murder," the new ambassador said with a stern expression.

"You will forgive me for saying this but… bullshit! We have evidence and witness account that placed your 'retired' shinobi in the act of kidnapping Hyuuga Hinata! We followed procedure with a hostile ninja in our territory!" the Hokage almost shouted as he slammed a fist on the desk, cracking it a little.

"What evidence is that? We have confirmed reports that there were absolutely no traces of our previous ambassador anywhere in the Hyuuga compound and none on the Hyuuga girl who accused him of abducting her. Here is what we think happened. The previous ambassador was just taking a walk outside the compound wall when a young infamous prankster decided to surprise and assault the man. Why would he have expected an attack in a village he had just signed a peace agreement with?" the ambassador said with a fake puzzled look before continuing.

"And to make it worse, the boy yelled out a false statement that would anger a random man nearby into a blind rage. After the ambassador was brutally murdered by the same man, the Hyuuga clan attempted to cover it up by having a young innocent girl lie about a kidnapping attempt and procured the gag and rope themselves. The reports also said that the young prankster himself disappeared right before the Hyuugas appeared, apparently not wanting to be caught responsible for the ambassador's demise. Because of that, he cannot be considered a reliable witness, even if we did not take his history of being an untrustworthy public nuisance into account," the ambassador said, laying out all his carefully prepared lies. The Hokage kept his deadly glare, but inside he was stunned.

'_What this man said matched the official ANBU report word for word. That shinobi really did not leave any trace, even on the young girl and the ropes, which was a near impossibility. How did Kumo get their hands on the report and Naruto-kun's history? Because the ANBU reports could still be accessed by just any nin with high enough clearance, I ordered the ANBU to strike Naruto's near death experience, the red Kyuubi chakra, and any evidence, including the blood and kunai used by the Kumo nin, from the official record. This was because of the S-ranked secret of Naruto-kun's Jinchuriki status….I didn't think it would come back to bite me in the ass!'_

"I honestly believe we have a better case than you do, and we will win if we held court in neutral territory over this…especially when we call your entire village in as witness to the young prankster's character. With that, I will repeat our one simple demand. Give us the intact body of the man responsible for our ambassador's murder. If you do not comply, I have been authorized by the Raikage to declare our newly signed peace treaty dissolved and we will escalate our military's presence on our borders," the ambassador reiterated.

"You dare threaten us? !" the Third snarled, increasing his killer intent at the ambassador, who blanched a little.

"W-we are simply doing what was required of us in response to the unprovoked murder of one of our most respected retired shinobi. Are you sure you want to risk heavy losses for an alleged murderer if things were to escalate between us? We all know Konoha is still weakened by the Kyuubi no Yoko's attack. I'm also sure your reports states that our military force is already back to full strength after the last Great War. I wonder how your village would feel if it was found out many deaths could have been easily prevented by the life of one single man? You don't have to worry about this being public. We will keep this quiet and you can just explain the Hyuuga man's death any way you want," the ambassador pressed his advantage.

The air grew heavy with tension each passing minute as the Hokage seemed to contemplate killing the man in front of him to just go ahead and get things started with Kumo.

"Get out," the God of Shinobi simply said before he did something he would regret.

The ambassador decided not to press his luck any more and made for the door.

"I will be back later tonight for the official response," the ambassador quickly blurted before exiting.

After Sarutobi felt Naruto come and leave and he had a few minutes to gather his thoughts, he realized there was no way out of this. It will either result in the death of one man or the deaths of many in a village with its morale still low and tired of death. He sighed and snapped his fingers. A dog-masked silver-haired ANBU appeared.

"Commander, you have heard all of that. Find the leaks in the ANBU's information network and seal them. Use any mean necessary and I don't care who were responsible. Just make sure they suffer before disappearing," Sarutobi ordered.

"It shall be done, Hokage-sama," Kakashi almost growled from behind his dog mask, angry at having been compromised. He disappeared out of the office to carry out his new orders.

The Third Hokage slowly stood up and looked out at his village, as if it would help make his decision. He remained looking out the window at the sun setting beyond the majestic forest surrounding this quiet village for almost an hour before he finally turned around and buzzed Tamae in. The coming darkness seemed to signify the Hokage's sober mood.

"Get me Hyuuga Hiashi. Tell him this is urgent."


	4. Defying Fate Pt2

**13,000 words….13,000 friggin' words! Anyway..**

**Here's the final chapter of the Hyuuga Affair arc. I hope I ended it in a way that most people will like. Some people will hate how it played out but I have my reasons and I know I can't make everyone happy. I just hope everyone enjoys at least any one aspect of this story. I'll leave more notes at the end.**

**I need my precious reviews!  
**

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**WARNING: This story will contain mature language, sexual themes, and graphic depictions of violence and gore. **

**DISCLAIMER: I do not own Naruto or any of its characters.**

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******Chapter 4: Defying Fate Pt. 2**

**Previously…**

_The Third Hokage slowly stood up and looked out at his village, as if it would help make his decision. He remained looking out the window at the sun setting beyond the majestic forest surrounding this quiet village for almost an hour before he finally turned around and buzzed Tamae in. The coming darkness seemed to signify the Hokage's sober mood._

"_Get me Hyuuga Hiashi. Tell him this is urgent."_

**Later in the Evening, in the Hyuuga Meeting Hall**

"This is unacceptable, brother! How could you have already agreed to this with the Hokage! ?" Hizashi roared at his older brother after Hiashi had relayed the Hokage's account of his meeting with the Kumo ambassador. He and his brother were standing on the main floor among the top elders from both branches of the clan as they argued over this development.

"Hizashi-san is right! We cannot allow you to be sacrificed! You are the head of the Hyuuga clan, the most noble and respected clan in Konohagakure! We also cannot allow our Byakugan to fall into their hands!" cried one elder.

"Let them fight us! We will beat them back like we always have done!" another elder raged. Hiashi held out a hand for silence.

"I appreciate your sentiments. However, we have no choice in this situation. Kumogakure outmaneuvered us on this one. Even if we decline, then go to war and somehow pulled out a victory, what do you think will happen? This country, weary of conflicts, will blame this clan for this new conflict and we will lose our reputation and standing in this village and the Land of Fire. This is my fault as I have killed the man in rage without any thought to the consequences afterward. I have failed one of my own teachings in always accessing any situation with a calm heart," Hiashi calmly said.

"This does not mean you should just give yourself up! You have a responsibility to rule over our clan and ensure its continued prosperity!" Hizashi tried to reason with his older brother. He and the other revolting elders were suddenly blown back by Hiashi's killing intent.

"That is ENOUGH! This has already been decided! Our loyalty is to the village first and the clan second! It was, has been, and will always be that way for as long as this village stands! I will not allow myself to be the one single person responsible for the possible destruction of our home and our children's future. I only came here to inform you of my decision and offer my goodbyes. I have already told you what I need for all of you to do after my death. I expect you all to carry out your tasks," Hiashi directed his gaze at his twin.

"The same goes for you too, Hizashi. I expect you to raise my daughters to be strong in my stead. Now…I don't have much time and I wish to spend my remaining time with my daughters before I leave the compound for my fate. I wish you good luck after this dark day. Farewell," Hiashi finished his speech and immediately walked up the wooden benches out of the hall, still followed by several protesting elders. Hizashi clenched both of his fists hard enough to hurt and gritted his teeth.

'_You do not understand, my brother. This clan will fall apart without you! The elders will panic and try to use both your daughters to gain more power and influence with others who would take advantage of the confusion. I cannot imagine them ever being happy while they may be used as political tools. I will be powerless to stop all that because of this damnable seal! This clan needs you more than the village does. For once, I will go against my own fate and disobey you to save you and this clan, brother." _

Hizashi left the hall with a determined pace, heading for his house.

**Hizashi's Home, a Few Minutes Later**

Hyuuga Neji knew something was wrong tonight. His father hadn't come back home yet and the entire compound was in an uproar over something. He had a bad feeling about tonight, as if his life would change forever after this; just like it did when he lost his mother on her last mission when he was younger. That night before he got the news felt just like this.

The front door opened to reveal Hizashi entering. He immediately went into his bedroom to get changed from his grey robes into a set of pitch-black mission robes, as if he was getting ready for a night mission. Neji was watching all of this with increasing trepidation.

"Is something wrong, Father?" Neji tried to get his father's attention but Hizashi continued his preparations, seemingly ignoring his son. Only when Hizashi had finished did he turn toward and kneeled down in front of his son with a serious expression that seemed to say he was going off to a battle he would not return from. Neji started to tremble in fear for his father and tears started streaming down his cheeks.

"Neji…my son, I want you to know that I am proud of you. Despite your cursed seal, you continued to excel and outshine everyone else in this clan, even your two cousins. It is because of that you will survive and grow strong even when I am gone. Tonight, I am going out to make a choice I can be truly proud to call my own after having been mocked by Fate my whole life," Hizashi then gripped his crying son's shoulders.

"Someday, you will find a way to be freed from your curse and change your fate. In the meantime, continue growing strong and do your best to protect the clan and those that are precious to you…do you understand me?" Hizashi implored of his son. Neji was stunned at his father's unusually passionate speech, but he didn't dare say anything for he believed if he did, then his father would leave and not return. Unfortunately for him, Hizashi continued anyway by tightly hugging his son with a whispered "Goodbye" before releasing and stood up to leave the house. Neji did not give up and quickly latched on to his father's leg tightly.

"NO! Father! You can't –" Neji's pleading was cut short by his father's light strike to the back of his son's neck, completely unseen by the young boy. The boy's body instantly relaxed and seemed to have fallen limp in his father's arms. As the boy was gently laid on the living room's couch, the last thing Neji saw before his eyes completely closed was his father putting a blanket over him, like how a father would put his son to bed.

**Same Time at Hiashi's Home**

Hiashi simply looked at his two daughters sleeping in each other's arms in their favorite place, a large, comfortable, and fluffy chair in the living room. Hinata and Hanabi had tried to stay up late because their father had suddenly gone out for the meeting with the Hokage then went straight to the meeting hall with the elders. They had wanted to greet their father when he came home finally, but they fell asleep before that. Hiashi smiled gently. He did not want to leave them, but he cannot allow them to see war if he could help it. He reached down to gently touch Hinata's forehead.

She shifted a little under the touch and ended up resting her cheek on the top of her younger sister's head. Hanabi was curled up in a small ball on Hinata's lap, her head resting against her older sister's chest. Hiashi let out a shuddering sigh and allowed a tear to roll down his cheek. He would truly miss them. He hoped they will pull through after his death and his brother will help them out in his absence. After a long minute of standing over his sleeping daughters, he gently wrapped them up in a blanket. He then quietly left the house to make his way toward the gate.

After bowing to the gate guards, Hiashi slowly made his way alone down the dark street leading from the compound into the village. It would be nearly midnight as Hiashi slowed his pace. He did not need to be at the Hokage tower for a good while and he would enjoy this walk before his upcoming death. It was interrupted, however, when Hiashi suddenly stopped after a few minutes of walking and activated his Byakugan.

"Whoever you may be, you cannot hide from my all-seeing eyes. You may as well come out now," he quietly declared to a nearby tree on the side of the road. The dense leaves on the tree shook and split open to reveal a black-clad man leaping down upon Hiashi's ready form. Hiashi effortlessly dodged a preemptive palm strike from the landing assailant before he rushed in to disable the man. He would not make the mistake of killing this time. He would just merely beat this man to within an inch of his life instead.

Hiashi opened with a blindingly fast strike at a tenketsu on his attacker's left shoulder with his right hand in a two-fingered thrust. It would disable the entire left arm if it struck true. He was mildly impressed to see the black-clad man effortlessly intercept his strike with an upward knife hand aimed at the attacking hand's wrist, deflecting it off course. Hiashi wasn't done as the initial strike came off course; he smoothly transitioned to his open-palmed left hand to strike at his opponent's ribcage, now wide open due to the intercepting arm up out of the way. It was so fast that there was no way this attacker could see and block it in time but he was surprised to see the attacker suddenly step in as if he knew it was coming. Hiashi's left palm connected with the exposed ribs much earlier than anticipated. As a result, Hiashi released his chakra just a millisecond too late after the palm has already impacted, messing up the timing and dissipating the chakra over a wide area for far less damage than a precisely timed charka strike would have caused. Hiashi was astonished by his attacker's knowledge of the Gentle Fist's weaknesses. This man also predicted the Hyuuga head's actions almost as if he was his…double. _'Wait a minute,,,. this chakra network and color, I recognize it now!'_

Before he could recover from his brief surprise, he grunted as he felt a painful sting in his neck. After pulling the Hyuuga clan head into his pace, it was almost effortless for the attacker to capitalize on the prey's half-second distraction and simply prick his victim's neck with a drugged senbon hidden in the other hand. Almost instantly, Hiashi's vision blurred as the attacker merely stepped back out of range. He only had enough effort to try several flailing swings before he wobbly fell onto his knees and then his stomach on the cold pavement of the street. He could feel his limbs go numb and, before long, he was unable to move anything but he remained awake and aware. The attacker slowly walked close, squatted down next to Hiashi's head, and carefully removed the senbon from the neck.

"Do not worry, what I gave you is not poisonous and it will wear off in the morning. Forgive me, brother. I am going against your orders," the black-clad man removed his black head wrappings to reveal Hizashi.

"Hizashi….why are you doing this? You know they will not just give up on this! You should not have stopped me, unless you want to be responsible for the death of thousands!" Hiashi tried to plead, despite his immobile body. Hizashi picked the body up and carefully moved his brother to the tree.

"The conflict with Kumo will not happen. However…you need to live. Your daughters and your clan need you alive more than this village needs you dead. I have decided I will take your place instead to ensure the best possible outcome for the clan. Since I am your identical twin, they will not notice it was I until after the "reparations" have been confirmed through the official channels. By the time they discover the ruse, there should be nothing they could do now without looking bad internationally, and we will be able to keep the Byakugan out of their hands. This is what I have chosen to do so I can protect our clan and especially my older brother," Hizashi explained as he laid his brother against the tree and carefully arranged the body into a proper and comfortable sitting position to preserve his brother's dignity as much as possible.

"What if you are wrong and they decide to go to war anyway? You will have died for nothing, Hizashi! What about your son? !" Hiashi tried to reason, his desperate eyes locking with Hizashi's steady eyes. Hizashi broke eye contact after a moment, slowly stood up over his brother's form, and looked longingly back in the direction of the Hyuuga compound.

"Kumo will be stupid to go to war over a false body. Deception is part of a shinobi's job after all. We just have to get them to think they won until it was too late and they can't do anything without looking like fools," Hizashi let out a slightly exasperated sigh before continuing.

"For a man with all-seeing eyes, you are blind to how much your daughters need you without Hitomi-sama around. Only you would be able to ensure their freedom and happiness, not me when I have this curse seal. Neji will be fine and you know as well I do he's very capable. I simply request that you help Neji grow into a strong warrior in my absence," Hizashi smiled proudly at the thoughts of his son before continuing.

"Forgive your little brother his selfishness. All my life, I felt like I have been mocked by fate, especially when my beloved son, the once-in-a-lifetime prodigy, was branded simply because I was a few minutes late in our own births. Tonight is probably my one chance to make a true choice…to die the way I choose doing what I want, which is to ensure the best outcome for the clan, and more importantly, the best future for our children," Hizashi said thoughtfully while Hiashi could only sit in stunned silence.

"Before I take my leave…I want you to understand something, brother. I have resented my fate, but I never resented you at all our entire lives. I will always be proud to have served the true head of our clan and proud to be your little brother. Goodbye, big brother," Hizashi ended his heartfelt speech by walking calmly in the direction of the Hokage tower, never looking back.

Hiashi could only sit in silence, his eyes following the departing figure of his twin. He lost his desire to plead for his younger brother's return. How could he when he saw fierce resolution in Hizashi's eyes? As Hiashi's paralyzed body remained propped against a lonely tree next to this lonely stretch of the dark street, his quiet voice carried out into the still midnight air long after Hizashi has left the area.

"Goodbye, little brother."

**Fifteen Minutes Later in a Park Near Hokage Tower**

'_Wow, that was rough. I took way too long finishing those exercises this time," _Naruto thought as he leaned back on a park bench, exhausted from his latest round of exercises.

'**That is to be expected with your body still recovering from this morning's routine. You did well, actually. Tomorrow you will rest both your mind and body. Either spend the day at home or go out with your friends,' **Kurama said in the boy's head. Naruto nodded, glad for the brief reprieve.

"Uzumaki-sama?" a voice surprised Naruto into sitting upright as he looked toward the voice's source. He saw that it was Hizashi-san coming into view.

"Hizashi-san? What are you doing out here this late?"

"I should be asking the same of you. It is more odd for a young child to be out here compared to an adult merely taking a stroll," Hizashi inquired with a raised eyebrow as he stopped and stood. Naruto had a sheepish grin and scratched the back of his head.

"Hehe…I'm sure you've realized I'm not like most kids. I was just resting after finishing my exercises and was about to go home when you showed up." Hizashi nodded, satisfied with the explanation.

"I see, Uzumaki-sama. I am on my way to see Hokage-sama for a mission. I shall see you around," Hizashi politely dismissed the conversation as he made to walk away. Naruto had something on his mind he wanted to ask, though.

"Hizashi-san, if you have time, I have a question," Naruto called out with an apprehensive tone. Hizashi stopped and turned to look back at Naruto. He inclined his head to let Naruto know he was listening.

"I was thinking about what you said the other day about your clan's history and the seal. If it was so bad, why hasn't anyone come up with a better seal? That everyone in the clan can use to just protect their Byakugan, without the pain and control," Naruto carefully said in an even tone. Hizashi was surprised by this young child's deep thinking. He had to take a moment to think over his answer.

"I am not exactly sure, Uzumaki-sama. My best guess is that, in the beginning, the clan was proud of the seal as it protected their pure bloodline from being stolen and tainted by their enemies. They did not realize the implications that the clan would have grown into a truly segregated system now. By the time the Branch members became dissatisfied with the way things became, everyone in the clan were already set in their ways. It is now tradition to use the curse seal and everyone accepted it. I suppose that is why not many have thought about modifying the seal up until now," Hizashi offered. Naruto could only furrow his eyebrows together in deep thought.

"You know, Uzumaki-sama…you are not the first one to ask me this. Hinata-sama asked me a similar question not too long ago," Hizashi added. Naruto looked up with a raised eyebrow.

"Hinata did? So she doesn't like the system either?" Hizashi shook his head.

"She never did. She is kind, does not like having servants, and she hopes one day to see the use of the curse seal banned."

"Wow. I was going to say, since I will be Hokage one day, I was going to get this seal banned and have them find another way, but it looks like it'd be a lot easier when Hinata's the next head of her clan and we work together," Naruto said with his foxy grin. Hizashi raised an eyebrow and kneeled down in front of Naruto to level his gaze with the boy's.

"What makes you believe you would be the Hokage?"

"I just started training, but I'm going to be the strongest shinobi ever! I have to if I want to protect my precious people. And when you become the strongest shinobi in the village, you become the Hokage, right? It's just natural," Naruto said as if was the most normal thing ever. The Hyuuga was suddenly reminded of the Yondaime Hokage. Hizashi raised the other eyebrow…. then broke into a chuckle. Naruto was a little unnerved by seeing a Hyuuga chuckling. _'Maybe that was why they wear such neutral expressions.'_ Hizashi suddenly ruffled the blonde's hair to his cry of surprise, and stood up with an amused grin.

"Uzumaki-sama, you will have to work really hard then since there are many powerful shinobi out there, but I know you can do it as long as you have your precious people to think about. My son, Neji, will be really strong too, but I hope you two will get along some day. Now, I have to go, so be sure to get home safe and have a good night," Hizashi finished by turning in the direction of the Hokage tower and walked again.

"Hizashi-san, can you tell me what this mission is?" Naruto quickly blurted out from the bench. Hizashi stopped for a moment and spoke without turning around.

"I can't tell you that, but I can say it's to protect my own precious people. Goodbye, Uzumaki Naroto."

Naruto watched the Hyuuga disappear into the darkness toward the Hokage tower, feeling a slight unease.

'**Boy, let's go home. There's nothing to do out here,' **Kurama suddenly spoke up. Naruto just shrugged and walked off toward his apartment. The fox was deep in thought however.

'_**That man had the eyes of a warrior who's content with all he did and is walking toward his death. Something is happening tonight but it's best not to let this boy know. There is nothing we could do right now anyway.' **_

**In the Hokage's Office**

The Third Hokage sat at the desk, waiting patiently for the arrival of Hyuuga Hiashi. In the room with him were two ANBUs, one of them Kakashi, and the Kuro ambassador. In the center of the office was a scroll laid out with a large storage seal array. The ambassador was growing nervous by the second as the other three occupants leveled their glares at the ambassador, as if they were wishing for him to slowly die by melting into a puddle.

"I expect this to be kept quiet. We will deny anything if this comes to light," the Hokage ground out at the ambassador. The ambassador flinched at the Hokage's harsh voice before he slowly nodded.

"When you retrieve the body, you will sign this statement that states you have retrieved your so-called 'reparations' for Kumogakure and we will not speak of this ever again, is that understood?" the Third continued as he pointed at a piece of paper on the desk, his glare deepening.

"B-believe me, we want to keep this quiet on our ends too. I will sign as soon as I have confirmed it was Hyuuga Hiashi himself," the ambassador tried to steel his own nerves against the Third's anger. It felt like eternity for him under the unbearably imposing presence of the two ANBUs and the Hokage.

Finally, the office's door clicked and creaked open to reveal Hizashi Hyuuga. It took the Hokage all he had to keep his face schooled in a neutral expression with the massive shock he was experiencing. The ANBUs were lucky they had their masks on and it took considerable effort to keep their bodies from showing any reaction.

'_What's going on? Why is Hiashi's twin brother here?' _was the thought of the three_. _

"Hyuuga Hiashi reporting," Hizashi simply said. The Hokage saw something in the new arrival's white eyes that made him think he should keep the charade going. He really hoped this man knew what he was doing.

"You have come, Hyuuga Hiashi. You do know why you are here, correct?" The ambassador, visibly relieved at having a distraction, asked as 'Hiashi' walked to the center of the office.

"Yes, I am to die and give up my body for my 'crime' of killing one of your 'retired' shinobi for 'no reason'. Let us just get this over with," 'Hiashi' dryly said as if the ambassador was nothing more than a cockroach to him. The ambassador bristled at the tone but said nothing. He then took out a photo of the real Hiashi to compare to 'Hiashi's' visage. The one minute the ambassador spent studying and comparing between the photo and the person was the longest ever for Hizashi, the ANBUs, and the Hokage.

"He matches the photo. Take the hitai-ate off and we will proceed. I'm sure you'd like to keep the insignia, Hokage-sama," the ambassador simply said and another new tension was rising in the air. They knew they would be found out if Hizashi took the hitai-tie off and revealed his hidden cursed seal.

"If it is all the same to you, I am doing this as a duty to protect Konohagakure from an unnecessary war. I would like to die knowing I have served my village to the very end, so please allow me to keep my hitai-ate on until after my last breath has left the body," 'Hiashi' coolly said without missing a beat. The ambassador took a moment to think before silently nodding.

Everyone almost exploded with relief but they had to keep up the charade. 'Hiashi' kneeled on the floor next to the scroll and closed his eyes as if in mediation. A long moment of grave silence persisted in the air before Kakashi in his dog mask decided to start preparing for the inevitable. However, the Hokage stopped him.

"I will do this one. It is my responsibility since I allowed this to happen," the Third grimly said as he moved slowly behind 'Hiashi' and took a small quick-injection syringe from Kakashi. The Third gripped the kneeling man's shoulder and leaned his head down next to his ear.

"I am really sorry. You will receive the highest honors for this. Your clan will forever remember you as a hero," the Third whispered, his voice breaking.

'Hiashi' only nodded once before he felt a small prick at the base of his neck. His last thoughts were of his son, his deceased wife, his two nieces, and his older brother and he let a smile grace his face. In just three seconds, his body fell limp in the Hokage's grip, devoid of all life. Hyuuga Hizashi passed away instantly and painlessly as a hero to his clan and village.

Sarutobi Hiruzen silently and gently laid the body down onto the sealing scroll with trembling hands. After a moment of silence out of respect, he slowly removed the hitai-ate to reveal that the cursed seal has disappeared, having already worked its magic sealing Hizashi's Byakugan and all of its secrets. The people in Kumogakure will not be able to learn anything from this man's body now. The Third then sealed the body into the scroll with a loud 'pompf'.

The ambassador silently walked over to the desk to sign the statement. As he set the pen down and turned around, he cried out in surprise as the Hokage suddenly grabbed him by the neck and swung him into a wall, cratering it inward. The ambassador was trying to let out a strangled cry of protest when he was frozen solid by the Hokage's glare and his killing intent. Sarutobi's face was old and wrinkled but his eyes looked virulent, cold, and calculating, as if they were the eyes of Shinigami looking at its newest soul to eat. The ambassador felt like he truly would die any moment just looking into his powerful gaze.

"You…may have won this time, but this will be the last time. After tonight, no Kumo ambassador or shinobi is welcome here until further notice, unless absolutely necessary. That means you will leave the village premises within ten minutes of this conversation or I will have you arrested for open hostility. In addition, if I ever see one single Kumo nin set foot anywhere in our country without express permission from our people for any reason at all…you tell your Raikage I will personally come and show them exactly why I have lived this long and why I am known as the GOD OF SHINOBI! ! !" The Third Hokage spat out before he harshly tossed the terrified ambassador to the floor with a loud crash. The whimpering man thought of nothing but escaping as he frantically scrambled to his feet, grabbed the scroll, and ran out the office as fast as his feet could carry him, as if Shinigami itself was breathing on his neck.

"Follow him all the way out to the Lightning border. Make sure he doesn't even stop for rest. And send someone out to the Hyuuga compound to tell them the news and ask for an explanation," the Third growled as the two ANBUs bowed and vanished. He was not relieved that they might have protected the Hyuuga clan's secret. He was still angry that he still sacrificed a life to supposedly protect thousands. It did not matter if it was a nobleman or a servant…a person's life was still lost this day and he had to allow it on his watch. All of the emotions he kept in all day finally burst out of one Sarutobi Hiruzen as he yelled in pure primal rage and smashed his fist on the desk, splitting it in two.

**The Next Morning**

Naruto noticed something was wrong in the air around the village. Life went on as normal to most people, but to him, he could feel that something was somewhat off. He relayed his feelings to his tenant as he was walking around, enjoying the morning air.

'**Stop by the Hokage tower if you want. Maybe that old fart would know,' **Kurama only had this suggestion to offer. Naruto, having nothing else to go on, decided to detour to the tower. He entered the tower, made his way up the stairs, and was let in by Tamae-san. The blonde was surprised to see his surrogate grandfather behind what looked like a different desk, looking like he was really beaten up in his chair.

The Third was just sitting there…having been up all night and dealing with all kinds of emotions. He was exhausted. He felt and looked defeated. He was so deep in thought he did not notice Naruto entering the office at first.

"Oh! Oh…hello, Naruto-kun. What can I do for you?" the Hokage tried to pick himself up and keep some semblance of a façade up.

"Nothing, Jiji-san. It's just that I haven't seen you in a while. Figured I'd stop by for the permit and chat a little. Though it looks like you have been through a wringer lately," Naruto pointed out.

"So I think I'll just pick up the permit and leave to do other stuff for the day," he added. The Hokage sighed and looked somewhat grateful for the thoughtfulness. He got up to retrieve the permit out of a folder and passed it on to the boy and they exchanged goodbyes before Naruto just remembered something.

"Jiji-san, before I go, I was wondering if you know something about Hyuuga Hizashi? I ran into him last night near here. He told me he was coming here for a mission to protect his precious people. I was wondering if he's ok now?"

The Hokage stiffened with a grim expression and that was all Naruto needed to see. His entire insides went ice-cold as his dark blue eyes turned icy blue and shrank to small dots.

"Don't tell me…" was all Naruto could squeeze out. The Third's expression softened into sadness and simply shook his head no.

"I am sorry, Naruto-kun. I will tell you he died very bravely and with honor for what he believed in. He had no regrets. Beyond that, I cannot tell you the details myself. It is up to Hiashi-san to offer more If you ask," the frail-looking Sarutobi tiredly said.

"He knew..." Naruto whispered before his face twisted into anger, his blue eyes still icy. The Third narrowed his eyes in confusion.

"He knew! He knew already he was going to die! That's why he talked to me like that last night. Why did you let him go? ! If you knew it was going to happen, why didn't you PROTECT HIM like a HOKAGE was supposed to? !" the boy shouted at his surrogate grandfather in tears and rage. He didn't want to stick around to hear the answer and ran out of the room, leaving a crushed Sandaime Hokage behind.

"I'm sorry, Naruto-kun. You will come to learn this is easily the worst part of being the Hokage," the exhausted and crestfallen Hokage quietly whispered to no one in particular.

**Four Hours Later at Nara Compound**

"….rut….Na…," was all Naruto heard from a very faraway voice in his dazed confusion and all was silent for a moment as he went over what happened with the Hokage this morning.

"NARUTO! !" yelled a voice that was very close by and it finally shook Naruto out of his dazed thoughts with a dumb expression. He took a look around to see he was sitting across a shogi table from a familiar lazy-looking pineapple-haired boy his age, Nara Shikamaru. Naruto then quickly remembered he had spent an hour crying after leaving the Hokage. Afterward, he ate something he didn't even remember and walked aimlessly around the village. He then ran into Shikamaru on the streets. Shikamaru noticed something was wrong and offered for his blond friend to come over to his place to cheer up. Now, the brown-haired boy had an annoyed expression as he muttered "Troublesome" and simply pointed down at the table, which had a match in progress.

"Sorry, Shika. I've been out of it," Naruto said pitifully as he simply moved one of his white pieces without a thought. His friend's eye twitched in annoyance at the new move and went into his "thinking" pose for the fifth time in this match if Naruto had paid attention and kept count.

"Oh, I got you thinking now. Guess that's somewhat a personal victory for me against you," Naruto said half-heartedly as he tried to clear the cobwebs from his head. Shikamaru raised an eyebrow.

"This is not the first time you forced me to do this. Troublesome…it looks like you're truly an idiot savant if you simply don't pay attention at all while playing shogi," Shikamaru said as he came out of his pose and moved one of his black pieces.

"Oi! I resent that remark!" Naruto indignantly cried as he moved one of his own pieces without another thought again and took one of his opponent's pieces. Shikamaru grunted in frustration and went back into his "thinking" pose.

'**You know…you just proved his point. I have never seen such sloppy play but you just keep getting out of trouble against vastly superior strategies. It's like what you are doing is organized chaos. In my thousands of years existing, this is simply astonishing," **Kurama offered her thoughts as if in awe.

'_Not you too, fox," _Naruto groaned mentally.

"Troublesome…remind me not to challenge you to a match when you're in a bad mood. This is bad for my brain," Shikamaru grumbled as he moved one of his pieces into position to be sacrificed. Naruto twitched his eye at that move…and he wondered what his friend thought of sacrifices.

"Hey Shika…what would you think if you really had to sacrifice your own life for a cause? Would you be angry at the person who asked you to do it?" Naruto quietly asked, his eyes facing down. Shikamaru silently stared at his blond friend for a long moment.

"That's an odd question to ask a seven-year old child, you know. If you want me to think about that seriously with what I know, I would say that the only reason I would be angry with the person who asked me to sacrifice myself is if I knew there were other options…other ways of solving the situation I could be in. However, if it was the only choice and if I was saving the people I cared about, I may find it troublesome but I might consider it with a clear conscience," Shikamaru said with a sigh. Naruto thought over that as he moved his own piece to take his opponent's sacrificial pawn. Shikamaru capitalized on the trap he set and took advantage of the match.

"You know, Naruto…it's troublesome to say this…" Shikamaru murmured as he effortlessly took another one of Naruto's pieces,"…but my dad told me this when he first started teaching me about shogi. He said that in many ways, a shinobi's life is almost like a game of shogi. You use strategy, tactics, traps, and sometimes sacrifices to win your battles. The only reason we do all of this is because we have to protect our 'King' no matter what." Naruto was deep in thought as he carelessly made another move that Shikamaru was prepared for.

"Our 'King'? Shouldn't that be the Hokage?" Naruto asked as his eyes twitched in annoyance with his growing disadvantage in this shogi match. Shikamaru just shrugged.

"I asked dad that and he was being troublesome about it…saying that we decide who or what is our 'King' that we absolutely must protect at all costs," the pineapple-haired boy said offhandedly as he moved one of his pieces for a checkmate and called it. Naruto just groaned and cursed.

"Damn it! You win…for the 68th time in a row! Anyway…I wonder what the Hokage considers his 'King'," Naruto murmured as he properly put his pieces away.

"I would think that's a question that's not troublesome even for you to answer," Shikamaru raised his eyebrow as he cleaned his side of the table. Naruto smacked his forehead loudly.

"The village and everyone in it. Of course."

Shikamaru smirked and muttered "Troublesome blondes" before getting himself up.

"Oi, you want to stay for lunch? Mom will be glad to have you over," Shikamaru shrugged as if he didn't care Naruto stayed or not.

Naruto's stomach growling was the answer.

**Several Hours Later, Outside in the Clans' District**

"_Remind me not to go back there for a meal, sensei. Yoshino-san didn't go easy on me with the etiquettes lessons today,"_ Naruto groaned tiredly as he left the Nara compound.

'**She's doing you a favor. What she was trying to show you tonight was how to eat properly with nobles. Everyone knows you're a favorite of the Hyuuga clan head now. That bossy lady probably figured she'd get started on helping you impress anyone if you were invited to any formal dinner," **Kurama reasoned.

"_I guess I can live with that. I just never will understand why there were four different forks. And three different glasses! I'm underage and I can't even drink two of them, anyway," _Naruto pointed out.

The boy and the fox continued talking within as Naruto walked his usual route past the Hyuuga compound. The blonde took a moment to pull out of his inner conversation to check things out at the front gate. He saw the guards were dressed in all black and he could feel from his location the mood was subdued inside the compound. Naruto bowed his condolences toward the guards. A little surprised, they returned the bow nevertheless. The boy continued past at a even pace, deciding he will give it a few days before it's safe to stop by.

"Uzumaki Naruto," a strained voice rang out from behind the blond boy. Turning around in confusion, Naruto's eyes landed on a lone and slightly larger boy standing in the middle of the street ten meters away. He was dressed in all black with long black hair tied up in a loose ponytail and the blonde saw that he has the white eyes of the Hyuuga clan. He looked like his whole body was tense with coiled-up anger. They stood staring at each other in silence. One was trying to figure out who this Hyuuga was, and the other was burning holes in the blond boy with blazing eyes.

"Yeah, that's me. I don't think we have met," Naruto asked with a raised eyebrow. The boy quickly took a fighting stance of the Gentle Fist.

"You don't have to worry about my name. You won't need to remember it after this!" the boy growled before running in toward the blonde with some killing intent.

'**NARUTO! He intends to kill you! Just get away! You can't beat him now!' **Kurama yelled into Naruto's mind. Naruto was so confused by the situation and the screaming that he just stood there as he took the boy's first strike square in his throat. The blonde was simply blown back, spitting out blood as he went down hard on his back. Naruto was in so much blinding pain just trying to breathe and clutching at his throat he didn't notice the longhaired boy had moved to stand over the blonde's body and started a flurry of two-fingers strikes at Naruto's tenketsus all over the body. Naruto could do nothing but scream hoarsely with blood coming out of his mouth. It felt to him like his entire body had red-hot fire spreading through it little by little as the longhaired boy continued striking more of the tenketsus. Finally the angry boy stopped and straightened up, breathing heavy.

"Uzumaki Naruto, I left your vitals for last. I want to make you understand that you will suffer as long as possible for my father's death!" the boy growled down at the battered blonde. Realization finally struck Naruto.

"Y-y-you'r-re N-nej-ji," Naruto painfully tried to gurgle out through his blood-filled throat as his entire body continued to scream in agony, not being able to move at all. The longhaired boy now named Neji twitched at hearing his name and narrowed his eyes angrily.

"Who told you that?" Neji snarled, his Byakugan blazing.

"H-H-h-izash-sh-i...GUH!" Was all Naruto could force out before he was struck hard in one of his kidneys. The pain he felt before was nothing compared to now and he nearly passed out from shock.

"Don't you dare say that name in my presence! You do not deserve that honor! It's your fault my father sacrificed himself in his brother's place! If you hadn't interfered with the fate of a weak person like my cousin, it would not have led down a different path toward the death of someone truly strong, like my father!" Neji spat out, his eyes blazing even harsher. Naruto, despite the extreme pain, frowned.

"H-h-ow c-can y-ou s-say t-t-hat a-about Hinat-ta?" Naruto pushed out through his pain, more dark blood pouring out of his mouth.

"She is weak. I have decided that weak people like you and her should not interfere with the fates of the strong," Neji said with a sneer.

"B-bullshit-t! Y-you s-should b-be protecting h-he –ARGH!" Naruto screamed out and gurgled again as Neji directed a charka strike at the left lung.

"A weak and dead person does not get to tell me anything," Neji's face darkened ominously before he prepared to strike for the finish.

'**Naruto, we're going have to break your promise with that old fart! I'm going to pump my charka into you…a lot of it. You're not ready and you may go berserk with the power but it's the only chance-' **Kurama was cut short by an ear-splitting scream of agony that was not coming from the Naruto but from Neji.

Neji screamed at the top of his lung to the high heaven as he grabbed at his head tightly and was about to tear his hair out. He fell down next to Naruto and flopped like a fish in unbearable pain. Naruto was stunned at this sudden change until he saw an approaching tall Hyuuga in all black. It turned out to be Hiashi holding one of his hands up in a seal and he looked pissed as hell. The boy quickly connected the dots. Hiashi activated Neji's cursed seal to stop him.

"T-that's e-nough, p-please!" Naruto tried to force out as loudly as he could. He was relieved when he saw Hiashi release the hand seal and sighed. Neji's screams suddenly stopped and he started gasping for air. He seemed to have fallen unconscious. The tall Hyuuga looked at one of the guards from the gate approaching the three.

"Get this….moronic boy to confinement and keep him there for a month. No visitors except for me," Hiashi ordered as he made his way over to Naruto's body and kneeled down. The guard quickly scooped up Neji's unconscious body and carried him away into the compound. Hiashi activated his Byakugan to scan the blonde's body for any major damage.

"It does not look fatal and you're already starting to recover. Thanks in no small part to your..." Naruto noticed this pause about his 'tenant' "...incredible healing most likely, Uzumaki-san. You were lucky when the guards decided to report that Neji suddenly ran out after you a few minutes ago and I decided to check. I think this is what you call a case of déjà vu. I had to look over you the other night as well," Hiashi said as he continued to scan the body. Naruto had to hold back a chuckle.

"P-please d-don't make m-me l-laugh. I-I hurt a-all over," Naruto said with a pained smile.

"That is what most people generally say after their first time facing the Gentle Fist. I apologize for this behavior from one of my clan members. I can have you rest inside or I can have you transported to the hospital on our expense if you wish, Uzumaki-san," Hiashi offered.

"I-I think I'll recover soon e-enough, so I'll w-wait wherever you p-put me inside if it's ok, and thanks," Naruto started to speak more clearly as he was getting used to the pain. He groaned a little when Hiashi picked the boy's limp body carefully up and started carrying him into the compound toward a luxurious house on the right side of the long reflecting pool this time.

'**Good thing this Hyuuga arrived in time to save his favorite Jinchuriki. The alternative would have made the entire village crap their pants with the feel of my released chakra alone and then converge on us with pitchforks and torches. At least that boy avoided being pasted across the compound wall like a graffiti. For now, I'm pumping my charka a little more than normal so you should recover sooner. That angry boy with the father complex did a real number on you it's surprising you haven't fainted from the pain yet," **Kurama spoke up from inside.

'_Sorry to make you feel my pain. We're sharing a link, right? You said you feel what I feel," _Naruto said guiltily as Hiashi opened the door to his quarters.

'**Oh, you needn't worry. I didn't tell you I could turn any of our shared senses off at any time. I keep the 'feel' link off most of the time since you only seem to get hurt all the time,' **Kurama said dismissively. Naruto twitched his eye.

"_Give me back the apology and the sadness I actually felt for your possible pain! Damn lucky fox..." _the boy huffed.

Hiashi arrived in the living room with the boy in his arms and carefully set him down on the carpeted floor, quickly removed the blood around Naruto's mouth with a damp towel, gave him some water to clear out anything in his still recovering throat, and procured a blanket and cushion.

"Uzumaki-san, you may rest here for as long as you need. I do have business to take care of so I will have to take my leave. My daughters should be here soon. Just explain your situation to them if you are awake and all should be fine," Hiashi said with a bow. He was about to leave the quarters when Naruto stopped him.

"Hiashi-sama, I wanted to tell you I already know about my 'tenant' so you don't have to tiptoe around it..." Hiashi blinked at this. "...and also I'm sorry about your brother's death. I could tell you two were close from the other day," Naruto forced himself to speak without stuttering in pain. Hiashi gave the boy a sad nod.

"We will talk more later when you recover. For now, just get some rest and I shall be back before too long," the clan head replied as he stepped out. Naruto decided to heed his host's suggestion and closed his eyes.

**Three Hours Later**

Naruto could still be heard gently snoring away on the floor. The silence of the living quarters were broken by the front door sliding open to admit two young girls wearing all black, one seven years old and the other two years old.

"Onee-chan, could we play games after dinner?" Hanabi childishly asked as she tugged at her big sister's black kimino. Hinata sadly smiled and put a hand on her younger sister's head.

"Ano…I don't think we can, Hanabi-chan. This is a day of mourning for Uncle Hizashi," Hinata said as the girls made their way further into the living room. Hanabi had an impatient scowl on her face before it turned into curiosity as she noticed Naruto on the floor.

"Who is that?" she pointed at the boy. Confused, Hinata just followed the direction her little sister was pointing in and yelped in shock as she noticed the still form of Naruto.

"N-n-naruto-kun! ?" Hinata cried as she immediately kneeled by the blonde and activated her eyes to see what was wrong. She gasped in shock as she observed what looked like the same red chakra she saw the other night mixing in with Naruto's normal dark blue chakra inside the body. She also saw that some of his tenketsus were closed but was relieved that they were slowly opening back up, though.

'_He was attacked by one of us? What happened?' _Hinata worriedly thought as Hanabi kneeled down next to her.

"Naruto? The one who beat the bad guy?" Hanabi inquired as she curiously searched over every inch of the boy with her gaze. Hinata could only nod. As the girls were contemplating how Naruto ended up injured and resting in their home, Hiashi had just entered the living room, back from whatever business he was taking care of.

"I see you have discovered our surprise guest, daughters," Hiashi announced, surprising the two girls with his voice. Hanabi recovered quickly, ran up to her father, and latched on to his leg.

"Father, why is Onii-san here?" Hanabi curiously asked as Hiashi patted the top of her head. He also noticed Hinata had the same expectant look on her face, awaiting his explanation.

"Uzumaki-san was attacked by a stupid young boy with a grudge about his father's death. He was unable to move so I decided to have him rest here until he recovers," Hiashi said with his eyes closed in exasperation.

"N-neji-niisan did this? Why would he blame Naruto-kun for Uncle's death?" Hinata's stutter disappeared mid-sentence as she showed a flash of anger in her eyes and Hiashi did not miss this. _'This boy is doing wonders for Hinata's self-esteem and confidence. Note to self: Fabricate reasons to get Uzumaki-san and Hinata together more often from now on.' _

"It was a misguided decision on my nephew's part to direct his anger at this child. Unfortunately, I do not think Neji-san will ever let this go until they meet in battle again in the future and finish it," Hiashi said with resignation in his voice.

"Ano…t-that's terrible for Naruto-kun," Hinata whispered as she dreaded the thought of her new friend being hurt again, especially by one of her relatives.

"I am going to prepare some dinner since the cook has the day off, so please leave Uzumaki-san to sleep in peace and get changed for tonight," Hiashi requested of his daughters and they obeyed, Hinata somewhat more reluctantly.

**Two Hours Later**

Naruto smelled something in the air before he slowly opened his eyes. It smelled like…curry? On that cue, his stomach grumbled loudly. His eyes opened wide quickly at that sound and sat up, only feeling a little tender from his earlier beating.

Naruto looked around to see he was still in the living room, which was now dark, and saw Hiashi through a lit doorway nearby and the man was kneeling at a table in the room connected to the living room. It was apparently his study and he looked like he was busy looking over a large collection of scrolls and books. Looking around a little more, he heard what sounded like very cute snoring sound from nearby. Following the sound, he saw two girls cuddled together in the large living room chair just a few feet away from him. They were wrapped in a blanket. He saw one of them was Hinata and the smaller girl must be the younger sister she mentioned, Hanabi. They seemed to have fallen asleep waiting for something…maybe for him to wake up?

"Uzumaki-san, now that you are awake, I would be pleased if you replenish your energy with your portion of the dinner I made. Your plate is still being kept warm in the oven in the kitchen. Please take your time eating and join me in the study when you finish. Do not worry about cleaning up after yourself," Hiashi's calm voice carried out into the living room, being quiet enough as not to wake either of the two girls. He hadn't turned his head around at all the entire time as he continued to go over the paperwork on his desk. Naruto decided to quietly do just what his host suggested.

Ten minutes later after eating some of the most delicious curry he had ever tried, Naruto quietly stepped into the study with Hiashi. His host finally looked up from the paperwork.

"Please close the door and have a seat, Uzumaki-san," Hiashi requested of his guest as he gestured with his hand toward a spot across the table. Naruto quickly complied as he slid the office door closed quietly before walking over to kneel down opposite Hiashi.

"I want to apologize on behalf of the entire clan for Neji-san's unprovoked attack against you. I have no excuse for his misguided anger upon you," Hiashi regretfully said as he deeply bowed his head. Naruto frowned as he thought for a moment.

"Hiashi-sama, is there really a need for an apology?" Naruto thoughtfully said as Hiashi raised his head in mild surprise. He continued quickly. "Neji-san did say I was responsible for the events that led to your brother's death. What if that was right?"

"Nonsense. If that was actually true then if my brother hadn't taken my place, you would be responsible for my death instead. If you hadn't stopped that Kumo nin, then you would be responsible for my daughter's unthinkable fate. There is simply no way to know what would happen with the infinite paths this entire event could have played out. Neji-san lost his mother early in life and now he had just lost his father. In his grief, he had decided to direct his anger at someone and you simply were unfortunate enough to be the target. I shall reprimand Neji-san severely for this and make sure he stays away from you until he calms down," Hiashi assured his guest.

"Hiashi-sama, I'd appreciate it if you just let Neji-san be and if he still wants to take his anger out on me in the future, just let it happen. Train him more, even. I will take it all and beat it back tenfold into him until he finally moves on," Naruto declared with a steady voice, stunning Hiashi.

"You should understand that he is a rising prodigy of this clan. He is stronger than I was at his age of eight…even stronger than when I was twelve. He was not joking about killing you. He will do it if he has a chance," Hiashi pressed.

"That's fine with me, sir. With the training I just started, I'm going to be the strongest shinobi ever. I want to protect my precious people and I can't do that if I'm too weak. I think it definitely will be a good match when we eventually meet," Naruto said with a confident smile, showing no trace of hesitation in his blue eyes. Hiashi had to wonder if this child in front of him was way too mature for his age or just simply excited about the prospect of a rival.

"Nevertheless, I will not allow any official duel between you and Neji-san within this compound and I will tell him any further unprovoked attempt on you will be punished more severely. Both of you will have to find a way to get an official match outside of this compound and that probably won't happen until the two of you are enlisted with the shinobi force. I will not allow any less. Is that understood, Uzumaki Naruto?" Hiashi narrowed his eyes at the blond boy.

"Perfectly clear, Hiashi-sama," Naruto grimly said with a bow before continuing. "I hope this happens and he lets it all out. I would hate for Neji-san to continue being angry with me. Hizashi-san said for me to get along with him when we talked last night," Naruto sadly said. Hiashi raised his eyebrow at the mention of his brother.

"Uzumaki-san, you have met my brother last night?" Naruto nodded and quickly relayed what happened between him and Hizashi in the park outside the Hokage tower.

"I see. I am glad he seemed calm and ready. I was worried he may have had regrets since this all happened suddenly," Hiashi murmured. Naruto decided to satisfy his curiosity.

"Hiashi-sama, if it is ok…I was not told by anyone exactly what happened. I'd like to understand his actions," Naruto asked with some apprehension. Hiashi allowed himself a small grin as he nodded and explained everything that happened. After thirty minutes of talking, Naruto clenched his fists in anger.

"Those Kumo bastards…that's not fair! They can't get away with this, even if they didn't get the Byakugan!" the boy growled through gritted teeth before his expression softened with realization.

"I just understood he did all this to protect his 'King', not because he served the clan or the Hokage. I need to apologize to the Hokage soon," Naruto murmured. Hiashi raised an eyebrow.

"The shogi analogy the Nara clan likes to use? In my opinion it is a somewhat rigid description of a shinobi's situation in many cases, but I can understand where you are coming from. Most of us have our 'King' we are willing to protect with our lives. Hizashi most certainly did it for that reason alone. I was willing to do anything to protect my 'King' too before he took my place. You should understand Hokage-sama did not order Hizashi or I to die for the village and I immediately offered myself upon hearing Kumo's demands. It is only because my brother's desire to protect his loved ones was slightly greater than mine that I am still here and alive in front of you," Hiashi said thoughtfully as Naruto nodded soberly, his eyes downcast.

"It's still not fair. Kumo is going to get away with murder," the boy murmured before looking up at Hiashi. At that moment, an ice-cold shiver went down his spine as he saw a truly malicious and devious smirk growing on Hiashi's face. It was a truly terrifying thing to see on the most powerful man in the Hyuuga clan and Naruto had a feeling that someone was going to regret ever crossing this man.

"I doubt it will go that way for Kumogakure if all went right. Great minds think alike and my younger brother had the exact same thought as I did when I was preparing to meet my death. I saw a glimpse of what he planned with my eyes when he disabled me and I will say it was a good thing we regularly studied up on all diplomats' mannerisms and personalities. We were confident the bumbling fool from Kumo would not check closely for anything on the bod and it is safe to say that not getting the Byakugan will not be the only surprise for Kumo," Hiashi simply said with the malicious smirk still plastered on his face. It was not even directed at Naruto and the boy was wide-eyed with terror at seeing this man's visage and it would haunt his dreams for a while. A certain fox inside him shivered with excitement, her hackles rising slightly down her spine.

**Kumogakure in Raikage Tower**

The exhausted and battered ambassador had just returned from Konoha, and in record time too. A had an amused smirk as the man told him about his harrowing experience with the Hokage's anger and that he was chased and hassled by two Konoha ANBUs all the way to the Lightning's border. A few minutes ago, the Raikage handed the scroll with the clan head's body off to a lab assistant for processing down in the tower's basement. He should be hearing something soon. He should be more ecstatic about this victory for Kumo, but he could not help but feel a little uneasy about something. He dismissed it as the occasional paranoia but a shinobi simply did not survive long without being cautious.

"Oi…did you actually check for any seal on the Hyuuga body?" the Raikage suddenly asked the ambassador out of nowhere.

"Yes I did…on the forehead. It was not there when they removed his hitai-ate," the ambassador said. A raised an eyebrow.

"Was this before or after death? Our reports on the seal says that it will disappear after death," the Raikage said with increasing tension inside him.

"….it was after death…GAH!" the ambassador gaped only for a second before the Yondaime Raikage moved with insane speed to grab the man violently by his neck. The huge man simply loomed over the little ambassador as A leaned in close to the face with an angry snarl.

"You DAMN FOOL! That was why they easily let this happen with only token resistance! The clan head has an identical twin that was branded and could have easily substituted with him! The clan head has NEVER been known to wear any type of hitai-ate inside the village! And you signed the FUCKING paper confirming that this body IS Hiashi Hyuuga, not his twin. Now we can't even raise some uproar about this or otherwise we look like the fools here, not THEM! You're the WORST ambassador ever!" the Raikage raged at the man shrinking and shrinking in his massive grip with each word.

He groaned in disgust at this man's stupidity and simply swung the now former ambassador around to throw him out through one of the floor-to-ceiling windows at the back of his office. It shattered with a thunderous sound and the mountain wind blew in harshly, blowing papers everywhere and ruffling A's robes. A growled as he heard the man's scream fading twenty stories down and a faint thud followed. He didn't care if the man survived or not as he sat down in the chair and leaned back with the wind buffering his tightly wound platinum blond hair, simply awaiting the bad news from the lab.

What he did not expect was a massive explosion shaking the entire building, even shaking the Raikage out of his chair. After the explosion died away, A immediately got up and gritted his teeth. He figured he could guess where exactly the epicenter was as he turned his **Lightning Armor **on. In the next instant, the office's door was obliterated into tiny pieces as the Raikage charged through, tearing up the floor underneath him as he instantly flickered to the stairwell. Using a combination of amazing acrobatics and his armor's super speed, he bounded like a lightning down the twenty flights of stairs to the basement level. He made the basement door his second victim as he skidded to a stop upon arrival. He had just gone down twenty stories from his office to the basement, on foot, in under 5 seconds total.

It was chaos. Half the people were running around in panic and the other were running damage control with smoke, fire, body parts and broken equipment everywhere. An entire room in the center of the basement level had all of its walls blown out into other rooms. A deactivated the **Lightning Armor** and looked at a bruised and battered person next to him on the floor who were just now aware of the Raikage's arrival.

"What just happened here?" Raikage asked with a neutral tone and his gaze steady on the destruction, though he probably already knew.

"A-a v-very p-powerful time-delay explosive tag! Hidden on the Hyuuga specimen! It was activated when he appeared! Out of stasis from the scroll!" the disheveled lab worker stammered in broken sentences as he tried to work off his daze. The Raikage sighed heavily…totally exhausted with everything. He tried everything and he still lost. He could not even bring himself to get angry with this. He brought this on himself by trying to deal a cheating hand. They simply returned the same favor and in the end, he was the one worse off. He would bet everything the Hokage never knew of this…it was prepared by this Hyuuga on his own. He might as well cut the losses now before it got silly between Kumo and Konoha. The Yondaime Raikage of Kumogakure let out a defeated groan as he started helping the people in the basement with the destruction.

**Back with Naruto and Hiashi**

Naruto simply stared at the clan head with mouth agape and eyes wide open. The fox was very impressed. Hiashi's devious smirk had been replaced by a neutral smile, as if the last few minutes were forgotten.

"Hiashi-sama, if I may speak freely…your brother was a vicious and evil bastard. Same goes for you too," Naruto bluntly said in awe.

"I did not get far in my political and shinobi careers without some measure of trickery and backstabbing. I knew better than anyone else that I am a 'vicious and evil bastard'. My brother deserved that description even more. Even in his death, he will remind them not to trifle with our clan again or they would pay a heavy price," Hiashi said with a smirk as he continued to look over some more paperwork. Naruto had to let out a chuckle.

"Just how the hell did either of you get your hands on some demo-class explosive tags? Even a kid like me know they were very heavily restricted after the last war," Naruto murmured curiously. Hiashi simply turned and stared at the boy in silence with a blank expression for a long moment, as if he was waiting for Naruto to just get it. The boy did finally get it and gave a sheepish grin.

"Right...powerful political figure with friends in high place," Naruto pointed out the obvious with an embarrassed chuckle.

They allowed a comfortable silence to settle in the study as Naruto seemed to contemplate some random thoughts. He decided after a moment it was as good time as any to leave his host for the night.

"Hiashi-sama, I should get going. It's late-" Naruto was about to politely dismiss himself when the study's door slid open to reveal a very sleepy and wobbly Hinata in her light purple pajamas with some white frills. Everything fell silent as Hiashi stopped shifting his paperwork and simply looked at his daughter with a blank expression. Naruto was simply surprised into silence by this sudden intrusion. Hinata looked out of it, looking sleepily between her father and her new friend.

"There…you…are. Naruto-kun…don't just walk…off like that," Hinata grumbled tiredly as she looked at Naruto through half-lidded eyes. Before Naruto could say anything, she simply stumbled up next to him, flopped down to lay her upper half across his lap, and hugged the blond all the way around his waist and her head was fully pressed against his chest. Naruto was shocked speechless by this sudden action.

"Stay….you're warm," Hinata mumbled into his chest before falling asleep again with a cute snore.

Naruto was stone still for a few long and uncomfortable minutes before he realized he did not see Hiashi make any attempt at admonishing or removing Hinata. He slowly looked around to see Hiashi had gone back to his paperwork like Hinata was not even there.

"H-h-iashi-sama…. may I politely inquire about what you are doing?" Naruto strained to not let his irritation at Hiashi's feigned obliviousness show through.

"I am simply going over the expenses reports for the entire clan. Only I can approve these or the clan would fall apart. What would they do without me...," Hiashi said with such blatantly fake innocence. Naruto swore he saw a ghost of a smirk on Hiashi's face just now.

"My apologies if I am interrupting your very busy schedule, Hiashi-sama…" Naruto was impressed with himself for almost keeping the sarcasm out of his tone. "…but as you can see with your all-seeing eyes…"_…ok, sarcasm is steeping in…_"…your precious daughter is cuddling up tightly against my body, and I can't move," the boy finished urgently, his cheeks red with embarrassment.

"I see that but thank you for pointing it out. However I am very busy saying yes or no to all of these reports and cannot spare even a second. You will have to wake her up if you wish to leave or wait until I'm done and I can put her to bed," Hiashi coolly said without missing a single beat. Naruto narrowed his blue eyes as he just knew Hiashi was smirking like a dastardly madman on the inside. The boy sighed in defeat but he wasn't going to play the clan head's game. He would just wake Hinata, who was sleeping with a heart-wrenchingly adorable expression, then apologize for waking her and leave.

"I should warn you my daughter is what one would call the 'anti-thesis' of a morning person. She has been known to repeatedly use her Gentle Fist to warn people off waking her up. Her caretakers and I can attest to that," Hiashi said as if he knew what Naruto was thinking. Naruto looked down again at Hinata's cute expression.

'_How could she be so dangerous? Hiashi has to be bluffing.'_

Naruto decided to take a chance and tried to shake her shoulder just a slight bit. Before he knew it, there was a sharp whoosh and he stiffened and sweated comically as he saw a small girl's hand, in a two-finger thrust, just a inch from his nose. The only thing that saved him was Hiashi effortlessly catching the hand by her wrist as if was nothing. Hinata's hand immediately went slack and slipped back to her body as Hiashi let go and went back to the papers with an amused smirk on his face. Naruto trembled and sweated at how close he came to getting a strike to his face and this girl was now cutely cuddling up tighter against his chest.

'_Ok, I changed my mind...t__his girl is dangerous!'_

"I am afraid my hand might slip next time, so I strongly recommend you don't risk another chance. She seems to be very attached to her sleep this night," Hiashi spoke in a very amused tone. This truly was an entertaining evening for him.

'_Hyuuga Hiashi, you truly are a vicious, evil, and, now, sadistic bastard,' _was Naruto's sole thought as he sat stone still with this cute and dangerous girl curling up even more and tightening her grip around his waist. He decided he didn't want to risk another stray tenketsu strike this day because they hurt like hell.

'**I am loving this guy! Devious and sadistic, he is a man after my heart!" **Kurama exclaimed with a mock flutter of her eyelids and then broke into laughter at her container's suffering.

It was two hours before a very tired and nerve-wrecked Naruto left the compound for his home, with the damn fox cackling at his luck the whole way.

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**The end of the Hyuuga affair is upon us! That was a lot of words. Anyway…I hope you're ok with how I finished the arc. I am sorry to those who were hoping for Hizashi to live, but I have my reasons. I am sure you will enjoy the story more as these reasons come into play during the Chunin exams. For now, we are done with the 'evil' Kumo for the time being and we will move onto Naruto's years in training and academy. I'll just skip through the training quickly…slowing down at some points for plot and character developments. It'll probably take a few chapters before we reach graduation and the genin days. I think you'll like what I have planned for our poor Naruto.**

**For now, i just need a few days' break. Writing 40,000 words total in five days...bad for my brain. :-) **

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**Replies to a few reviews:**

**Biohazard82: Sorry I killed off Hizashi, but I did make sure Kumo got theirs in the end. We tight, homie? :-P**

**Leaf Ranger: And Hyuuga Affair is now over and you won't have to suffer through the Kumo hearsay! Now I shall make Naruto use his Talk no Justu to win every battle from now on! Everyone will love that! ;-P (Just kidding. The only story that talk no justu was ever funny in was 'It's For a Good Cause, I Swear!' by Sarah1281. If you haven't read it, I highly recommend it for the laughs.) **

**ShINaiX: I will tell you right now I'm not going to make Sasuke and Sakura important to this story. They'll just be side characters. So team 7 won't be like in canon. Naruto's team and sensei is still kinda up in the air. Once I write the next few chapters I'll know by the time the graduation chapter rolls around. As for Anko, I'm sure most people will love how she and Naruto would meet soon. It'll be funny…at least in my mind. Temari will be interesting as she's already an outsider as a Suna nin. Hope you keep enjoying this story! By the way...solved your issue with Kurama's link with Naruto on feeling pain. :-) **


	5. The Legacy

**Before we start, I want to let anyone who read the story already know that I made a small change in Chapter One. More specifically the scene in the hospital room between Naruto and the Hokage. You will see a small addition at the end of that scene. It's nothing significant but I never liked the fact that it was never known Naruto actually kept his memories until it was just suddenly brought up out of nowhere the next chapter. **

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**Wow…this story got to 50+ reviews with just four chapters. I like that feeling. **

**I bring you another installment of Heiress, Rose, and Princess. I hope you'll enjoy the chapter, though I am worried people may not take well to a couple gags I did in this chapter. You'll know what they are. If you did not like them, no worries, I don't intend to use that gag much, if at all, beyond this chapter. **

**I would like for you to read the notes I left after this chapter since they pertain to a poll I'm setting up to determine a kenjutsu style for Naruto. I have two figured out and I'm leaning toward one of them but I wanted to see what the readers might like for our hero Naruto. As for taijutsu, I already decided on that one. **

**Enjoy this chapter and be sure to review!**

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**WARNING: This story will contain mature language, sexual themes, and graphic depictions of violence and gore. **

**DISCLAIMER: I do not own Naruto or any of its characters.**

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** 5: The Legacy**

**Two Days Later in the Hokage's Office**

In the warm radiance of the rising sun this morning, Konohagakure's own Sandaime Hokage was seen going over the paperwork that had slowly backed up since the Hyuuga kidnapping attempt. Now that things settled down since Hizashi's untimely demise, the Hokage was forced to face his greatest enemy; the stacks of papers on the desk waiting for him to painstakingly look through. Sarutobi was a little disappointed that he wasn't going to be reading his copy of the new installment in his student's Make-Out series for a while.

The Hokage decided to take a break and enjoy a mid-morning smoke. As he was preparing his pipe with some new tobacco, the office's door banged open loudly to reveal one young, blue-eyed, and whiskered blond boy. Holding the pipe still halfway to his slightly open mouth, the Hokage's eyes followed the young boy's progress into the office until he stood in front of the desk. The boy seemed to have an uneasy expression on his face. The Hokage, holding his pipe still, was wondering what was wrong when his surrogate grandson suddenly bowed deeply at his hip.

"Jiji-san, I'm sorry for what I said the other day. It wasn't fair to you. I learned more about what happened and I understand this wasn't easy for you," Naruto sincerely and regretfully declared from his bow. Sarutobi smiled gently as he slowly put his pipe down.

"It's alright, Naruto-kun. How you felt about that is correct in my own opinion. I do wish I could protect every single person, but there are times where I have to risk some of them on missions to protect the village as a whole. Unfortunately, it is part of my job as the Hokage. I don't like it, but it's what I have to do," the Hokage admitted.

"Even so, I shouldn't have said that," Naruto insisted as he rose from his bow.

"Well, that's over with. Tell me, how is it going? I hear you were attacked by a wayward Hyuuga the other day," the Hokage changed subjects, hoping to prolong his reprieve from the paperwork.

Naruto raised an eyebrow. He wasn't sure anyone else other than Hiashi saw that incident and he was confident the Hyuuga clan head wasn't the type to just go tell anyone about a troublemaking Hyuuga. He figured it was those two ANBUs guarding him that recounted the scene to the Hokage.

"Oi, care to tell me why my followers didn't jump in when Neji-san beat my ass to within an inch of my life and was about to strike the final blow?" Naruto said with an irritated tone. The Hokage coughed violently after he took a surprised intake of breath.

"I'm sorry about that, but they saw Hiashi-san coming so they decided to stay back and let the scene play out," the Hokage finally admitted after coughing a few times.

"But…how did you know they were there? You never gave any indication of noticing them up until now," the Hokage wanted to figure out the breach in the security. Naruto simply pointed at his nose and then one of his ears.

"I could smell them and I fall asleep to the sound of their heartbeats nearly every night. I noticed them a year ago or so," Naruto plainly stated and the Hokage was shocked to hear this. Even an Inuzuka would hard-pressed to find the hidden ANBUs.

"My senses became even better since that night with my 'tenant', though. Like for example…" Naruto turned around to point at a spot by the giant bookcase near the door. "…I could smell that guy there had bacon and eggs for breakfast…" Naruto paused to sniff something…"and coffee too. Black, I'm guessing…."

Naruto then turned again to point at the office's lone sofa in the back corner, "…and that guy smells too much like that sword cleaning oil. I guess he just likes swords a lot," Naruto deduced before finally turning back to the Hokage and pointed up at the tiled ceiling.

"And that woman up there used some very fruity smelling shampoo. I guess she thought we're in a tropical area, but I sure as hell don't see any fruit trees around to cover up the smell," Naruto finished. The Hokage sat there stunned. For a moment he believed this young boy would grow up to be a truly dangerous shinobi…before the apparently male ANBU in the ceiling jumped down to appear at the Hokage's side and cleared his throat. It turned out Naruto mistook him as a woman. The boy let out a sheepish grin.

"Sorry ANBU-san, I thought you were a woman with that shampoo. No offense, sir," Naruto bowed slightly. The ANBU just shrugged his shoulders and mumbled something about "had to use my girlfriend's shampoo" before disappearing back into the ceiling.

"I put a cube of sugar in my 'black' coffee," pointed out a man's voice from the hidden spot by the bookshelf. Naruto flinched and turned his head toward the man's voice.

"Who uses just one cube in their coffee? ! Even I know you put in at least two cubes to even get any change in the taste, and I don't even drink coffee yet!" Naruto defended.

"I'm female," a feminine voice called out from the sofa. Naruto comically twirled his head again toward the sofa in shock before sighing.

"Gimme a break. It's not like I've learned to tell the differences between men and women by smell yet…"

The Hokage, having watched all of this, shook his head in amusement. '_Well, this boy at least will be dangerous in the future with more practice.' _His amusement was short-lived when the Third heard something very uncomfortable.

"…though you should clean your sword better. I can smell blood on you," Naruto innocently offered his advice. The air in the room quickly chilled and cracked as the other men stayed stone still, not wanting to make the slightest amount of noise, even breathing. They all knew she hadn't drawn blood from anyone for days. Naruto just cocked his head at the odd atmosphere.

"U-u-um…restroom break!" the woman's panicked voice cried out before a whoosh of air was heard, signifying the unfortunate woman's departure from the office.

"What just happened?" Naruto inquired as he looked intensely at the profusely sweating Hokage. The Third did not want to answer that. He tried to shrug it off, acting as confused as the blond boy. It seemed to work as the boy returned the shrug and seemed to have moved on to another subject in his mind. The men in the room and a certain fox let out a silent sigh of relief. They did not want to be the one to tell a seven years old boy about the "facts" of life. Taking a moment to settle down after that awkward situation, the Hokage spoke up again.

"So…you didn't answer my question about how you are doing. Is everything ok? Are you doing well with the training so far?" Sarutobi pressed a little. Naruto smiled broadly.

"I'm doing great! I'm getting along with Hinata and her dad, Hiashi-sama. They're pretty swell once you get past the usual Hyuuga stoicism, or in Hinata's case, her shyness. As for the training, the fox's working me hard. See?" reported Naruto as he rolled up one of his t-shirt's sleeves and flexed his muscles, which showed some significant improvement from just a week ago. The Hokage nodded in approval.

"I'm glad to see you're working hard. I hope you get along with the Hyuugas. They will be very important allies for you if you stay friends with them," the Third advised. Naruto nodded.

"I know it's important, but I'm not going to be friend with anyone just because I could get an advantage in anything. I want to be a genuine friend to anyone," Naruto declared. He did not want to be thought of trying to get on anyone's good side just for his own reputation.

"That's a good principle to follow. I am sure all of your friends will appreciate that," nodded the Hokage. Naruto returned the nod and turned around to leave.

"Well I guess that's all I got to say. The fox's grumbling for me to get back to exercising already so I'll be going, JiJi-san!" Naruto waved over his shoulder as he exited. The Hokage smiled and set about getting back to the paperwork when he noticed something different.

"Did this stack of papers just increase in size when I wasn't looking?" the Hokage said, directing a nasty glare that would set anything on fire at the papers. A sweat drop formed in the air over by the bookshelf.

"No, Hokage-sama. It's just your imagination…I think," the mysterious voice replied without any conviction.

Outside the office with Naruto, our blond hero was giggling mischievously as he continued down the stairs.

'_How's that sensei? I managed to sneak in an extra stack of papers when the old man wasn't looking. I would've loved to see the look on his face when he sees they were all requests from random villagers for my face to be engraved into the Hokage Monument,'_ Naruto thought at a smirking Kurama in his head.

'**Not bad, boy. It's not the best but that'll have to do for our pranking for now. Let's get back to your exercises," **said the fox as Naruto started stretching at the bottom of the stairs.

'_Hey sensei. I was just wondering what was up with Jiji-san and that woman in the office. Did I say something wrong?' _Naruto inquired of his fox-sensei who sweated nervously at his naive curiosity.

'**I-it's probably nothing. Let's go! Your body's not going to get any stronger when you're standing here thinking about useless things!' **Kurama tried to urge on her container, hoping he would forget about that quickly. Naruto just shrugged and went out of the tower to finish jogging.

**Some Time Later in a Certain Apartment**

Mitarashi Anko, fourteen years old and just promoted to Chunin, groggily rubbed the sleep out of her eyes before she stretched her entire body in her bed. She was happy she usually drew the night shift in most of her duties. She definitely wasn't a morning person at all. After stretching, she slowly got out from under the blanket revealing a nearly naked body in only a pair of purple striped panties and nothing else. Anko did not pay this any mind since it was her preference to sleep that way. She walked over to the closet in her sparse bedroom.

The only personal touches in her room were two framed photos on the nightstand by the bed. One photo was of Anko getting congratulations and hugs from her two friends, Yugao and Kurenai, when she was promoted to Chunin a few months ago. The other photo was a simple one of Anko smiling genuinely, which was rare for her, next to her equally smiling surrogate sister and roommate, Yugao.

Anko finished getting dressed for the day. It was a tight white t-shirt, with a random logo on the front, and a black miniskirt. The shirt did little to hide her growing bust, which was already impressive for her age. She finished the outfit off with her long silky purple hair done up in her usual pineapple style and putting the hitai-ate under her long bangs on the forehead. She went into the kitchen and quickly ate a breakfast of toast and oatmeal. Afterward, she flopped down on her stomach on the living room sofa and simply let her mind wander for a while.

It was two years ago when she was rescued by the ANBUs from that dark and wet abandoned lab. She still hadn't recovered any of the memories she lost during the three years she was supposedly with her old sensei, Orochimaru. Not even the expertise of the Yamanaka clan head, Inochi, was able to help her find any trace of these memories. Anko was left to deal with picking up pieces of her life, made difficult by suddenly skipping three years in her mind into a developing teenage body and the stigma of having been an apprentice to the village's most hated traitor.

Her first experience with that stigma was the continued disgruntlement of the male ANBU escorting her from the lab to Konoha. Although he did keep silent under order, she could see him looking at her with murder and disgust in his eyes. It grew worse when she arrived in the village and news spread that an ex-apprentice of the traitor Orochimaru was in custody. By the time she reached the Torture & Intellegence building, people were already lining the path screaming insults and throwing debris at her. It took a massive dose of killing intent from the female ANBU escort to scare the crowd away.

The interrogation was relatively tame because it was already verified by Inochi Yamanaka that Anko did lose her memories and she was telling the truth. It did not keep Morino Ibiki, the Head of Interrogation, from asking her truly uncomfortable and personal questions. The only good thing from that miserable day was the Hokage dropping by and assuring her that he did believe in her and that if she wished to enter the shinobi force, she was allowed to do so. That put the Hokage number two on her list right behind the female ANBU who rescued her and comforted her on the way to Konoha. After being allowed out of interrogation, she was escorted to an apartment by the same female ANBU that saved her. Upon arriving, Anko was surprised to see the ANBU remove her mask, revealing a beautiful woman with somewhat exotic slatted eyes and long purple hair.

**Flashback**

Anko was surprised and bewildered by the female ANBU suddenly taking her cat mask off in the middle of the living room of the apartment that she was taken to.

"Wha…Neko-san?" was all the young teenage girl could blurt out upon seeing her savior's beautiful face.

"I go by that name when I'm working. When I am off, you may call me Yugao. Uzuki Yugao," the woman now named Yugao smiled gently as she introduced herself.

"Ok…Uzuki-san…but why did you just reveal yourself?" Anko could not get it in her head that someone was actually nice and gentle to her after the past several days of dealing with nothing but anger and misery.

"It makes sense for me to introduce myself as your new roommate, Anko-chan. I studied your file and I noticed you have no relative to live with. Considering how the past few days went since you entered this village, I figured you could use someone to help you through this tough time….a friend," Yugao offered. This stunned Anko into silence as she stared at her new roommate wide-eyed for a few long moments. Yugao seemed to shift uncomfortably under the stare. Maybe she was wrong about Anko wanting someone to help her?

"T-t-thank…you," Anko barely whispered out as she shuffled close to Yugao, her arms spreading out slowly. When she got close enough, Yugao could see tears start to stream down the young girl's cheeks. Anko finally clutched her new roommate into a crushing hug, and let out a loud wail of misery and anguish. The dam finally broke wide open for Anko as she just simply let out all the emotions she felt over the past several days of hell. Yugao simply only hugged Anko back and stroked her purple hair gently as she sobbed into her savior's chest for what seemed like eternity.

**End Flashback**

That was the last time that Anko let herself cry. She swore to herself that night that no matter how shitty her life got, she'd never let Orochimaru win by taking the easy way out. She swore she would go out fighting, never letting being tainted by Orochimaru get her down. Things never got easy for her after that night though. Countless nights since then were interrupted by extreme pain radiating from the curse mark that Orochimaru left on her chest, and the nightmares it caused as well.

When she enlisted, as a genin, her genin team and sensei never let her live down the fact that she was associated with a traitor and was never trusted. It was a miserable year and half for her, despite the fact she met Yuhi Kurenai from another team and she did not judge Anko. They clicked as friends immediately. She, along with Yugao, did help alleviate some of the pain and misery Anko felt at the hands of her team. It was only because of her two friends that she managed to last long enough with her team until they were nominated for their Chunin exams. With luck and strategy, she almost single-handedly pulled her team into the finals.

She was the only one out of the team to have passed, thanks to the fact the exam was in Iwagakure and the judges there weren't biased against her past association with Orochimaru. Even then, her own village council was going to block her promotion based on drummed up charges by her former team that she sabotaged her two teammates somehow, at least until the Hokage angrily stepped in. That endeared him to Anko even more. She would only obey the Hokage completely and it took him ordering her to listen to her supervisors as a Chunin before she would do her job properly.

Things got a little better for her as a Chunin. She still had to deal with her teammates' prejudice but it was manageable for her since it weren't as personal as it was from her former genin teammates, who still had yet to get promoted. The fact that she switched teammates and captains often helped too. Her life in the village became more manageable too. The villagers' hatred for her did not disappear but they were a lot less intense than when she first arrived in the village. She just got open glares from everyone and disgusting leers from some men.

She may have been associated with a traitor, but it did not stop men from thinking she was beautiful, especially with her being an early bloomer, and they figured she was easy because of Orochimaru. She proved them wrong by introducing her foot to their balls. It did not stop them from coming back more aggressively, however and she had to be harsher. Some of the incidents even ended up with her standing before the Hokage for a reprimand on sending her snakes where the sun definitely did not shine. She swore to herself she'd make it to Jonin quickly…even Special Jonin would do for her. That would allow her to work more solo missions. It also would give her a measure of deterrence against most of the male population because of what the rank would have signified her skill level to be.

She was jolted out of her thoughts by the front door banging open. She looked up to see her older roommate, 20-year old Yugao, stumbling into the apartment as if she was a zombie. Yugao unlatched her sword from her back and removed her mask then tossed them onto a chair rather carelessly. Anko noticed Yugao's downcast expression as she unceremoniously stumbled onto a chair at the dining table, her head buried in her arms.

"Something happen today, Yugao-nee? I thought you got the easy shift this time,…just guarding the Hokage's office?" Anko carefully inquired as she sat herself upright on the sofa, a little worried if something happened to the Third.

"I did get the easy shift. I even got the easy spot on the sofa today. All I had to do for the entire morning was to just sit there and stay invisible." Yugao mumbled as she raised her head from her arms, her expression still downcast and…. embarrassed?

"So…something clearly happened," Anko pressed for more details.

"So…IT came early," Yugao simply said, expecting her roommate to get it. Anko had to wince. It took Anko a long time to get used to the idea of a girl's body suddenly staring to bleed and cramp up bad once every month. That was one of the most jarring effects of her suddenly transitioning from her nine-year old self to twelve-year old already in puberty when she lost her three years of memories. This got her very embarrassing conversations with Yugao about periods, puberty, and sex for many weeks afterward. Not to mention the uncomfortable visits to a specialized medic nin just for checking on her reproductive health. She only just had gotten used to the idea of becoming a woman recently.

"Ouch. Lose your favorite pair?" Anko said, expecting this reason to be why she was depressed. It was not like anyone was able to tell with Yugao's dark-colored ANBU pants.

"No. That's probably the only good thing from this. I didn't lose any pair because I was…. told just when it started," Yugao mysteriously said, still looking depressed.

"Ok, I guess that's ok…. wait…. what did you say? You were told? !" Anko's eyebrows shot up in disbelief.

"Yes, Anko-chan…I was told that I just started my period…" Yugao started trembling. "…BY this SEVEN years old blond boy with a better sense of smell than the entire Inuzuka clan! RIGHT there! In the goddamn HOKAGE'S office! With the freakin' HOKAGE and TWO of my TEAMMATES within earshot in the same DAMN room!" Yugao cried out pitifully before slamming her head back onto her arms on the table.

"So now three people aside from Hayate-kun know my cycle…" she mumbled from her arms before shooting back up with an irritated expression.

"If Hokage-sama assigns me easy missions this time next month 'out of concern for me', I'm going to stab him repeatedly with my sword, I swear to Kami!" growled the purple-haired ANBU. Despite her roommate's misery, Anko had to stifle a chuckle. It wasn't normally like Yugao to go off the handle.

"So how did the little boy look after you sliced him into pieces for his offense?" Anko teased. Yugao raised an eyebrow at her roommate's assumption that she would do something like that.

"I didn't do anything to him. Besides, he had no idea what he was saying. He thought I was fighting someone and suggested I clean up because he smelled the….blood," Yugao said with a shiver at the last word. "He's an adorable and naive little blond boy with those whisker marks and beautiful blue eyes. I could not stay mad at him even if I tried," Yugao sighed dejectedly before continuing. "I'll be okay…I'll probably forget about all this after a week. It just was embarrassing today, that's all."

Anko raised an eyebrow at her roommate's impression of the boy. Yugao generally didn't care for kids because she considered them brats and don't intend to have any kid of her own for a long time, if she ever got around to that. This kid must have been someone special to endear himself to Yugao.

"Who's this kid then? Must've been super-skilled or high-class VIP if he could just go into the Hokage's office," Anko asked offhandedly. Yugao smiled at her roommate's curiosity.

"No, just a kid that Hokage-sama considers his surrogate grandson. His name's Uzumaki Naruto. I can tell he will grow up to be a very interesting, and probably amazing, shinobi. It's almost too bad he's not close to your age…at least at this time. You two would get along great when he becomes older and more mature. Hell, despite his naivety, he's mature beyond his age," Yugao sadly said.

"Really? What kind of history did he have?" Anko inquired. Her roommate shook her head soberly.

"Sorry, Anko-chan. I trust you but that's a S-class secret that Jonins and ANBUs only know. You will have to hurry up and get promoted to Jonin to understand everything about this boy," Yugao mysteriously said as she politely shot Anko down.

Even though Anko had an impatient scowl, she just shrugged and got herself up to put on her black combat boots.

"Sorry to hear about your morning, Yugao-nee. I'll leave you alone to wallow in your humiliation as I go out to kill time," Anko declared with a teasing smile. Yugao simply stuck her tongue out at her roommate before returning her head to rest on the table. Anko giggled as she stepped out the front door.

**Naruto on a Random Street in the Village**

Naruto was panting heavily as he continued to run at a quick pace up the street. He was already used to the open glares from the people on the street. With his super hearing, he could hear them whispering about the 'demon brat' and that 'he's training to get strong so he could destroy the village so we need to hurry up and kill him'. However, he was encouraged to hear a few positive things from some of the younger people like how he 'saved the Hyuuga Heiress…what monster would do that?' and how he was nice to them despite being shunned. Naruto had to smile. Hearing just one of these positive comments made it worth hearing a thousand insults from the others.

He was so distracted by his happy thoughts that he did not notice there was someone in his way. He crashed into the person's legs hard and bounced back onto his back on the hard ground. Before Naruto could apologize, a large man's hand suddenly grabbed onto the boy's collar and picked him up harshly. Naruto let out a cry of discomfort and opened his eyes to stare into the hateful glare of a large male villager. Naruto knew this man as one of these villagers that were most vocal and aggressive against his continued existence.

"How dare you try to hit me, demon brat? !" the man hissed harshly. The boy knew he was in for it, but he had to try to calm the man down. He put both hands out in a placating gesture.

"I'm sorry. I wasn't watching where I was going. I was just jogging," Naruto tried to say calmly. The man shook the boy hard for a few seconds.

"Don't think you can trick me with that nice boy act! I know you're secretly training to destroy this village in the future! Well, I'm going to do everyone here a favor and put an end to that right now!" the man declared to the other villagers gathering around him as he pulled out a long knife from his belt. The villagers gasped and some of them cheered.

"I'm going to make you suffer…" the man ominously whispered as he drew his knife back. Naruto had no choice but to close his eyes and hope that Kurama would help him survive this until someone interfered. He was still too weak to even defend himself against a villager.

However, Naruto never had the chance to test his quick recovery once again as he heard a grunt of pain and he was suddenly dropped. Landing hard on his butt, he cried out in pain as he opened his eyes. He was stunned to see a beautiful purple-haired teenage girl with pupil-less light brown eyes holding onto the large man's knife hand as if it was lightweight. Mitarashi Anko glared harshly at the man. The large villager looked at the young girl fearfully before his face started to grimace in pain as the girl tightened her grip on the man's hand. Naruto could hear the slight fracturing of the man's hand for a second before he yelped in pain. Anko finally let go and the man stumbled back, dropping the knife in the process. Clutching painfully at the fractured hand, the man glared balefully at the purple-haired girl.

"You…you snake bitch! Of course a traitor's whore would protect the demon brat!" the man spat out only to wilt under Anko's rather impressive killing intent.

"You better get it into your fucking head…and the same goes for all of you..." Anko swept her arm out to indicate the other villagers. "I am a kunoichi of this village and my job is to do what I think needed to be done to keep the peace and protect its people. I simply saw a young boy being harassed and about to be stabbed by a pathetic retard who seemed to think this cute little boy was out to destroy the entire village," the purple-haired girl laughed out mirthlessly before pointing at the large man. "You're more of a danger to this village than this boy could ever be! Get the fuck out of here before I set my snakes on you…. and that goes for ALL OF YOU TOO!" Anko raged while sending her killing intent everywhere, scaring everyone around them. In the next second, it was just two of them on the street.

"Whoa…" Naruto simply said in amazement. The teenage girl turned around and gave a victorious smile before bending down to offer her hand for Naruto to grab onto. The boy gladly took the proffered hand.

"Thanks, onee-chan! You saved me!" Naruto happily said as he got on his feet. Anko could only smile and rubbed a finger under her nose.

"It's nothing. I don't know why they would think you would destroy the village. You're pretty cute, especially with those whiskers," Anko teased as she bent down to pinch one of the boy's cheeks. Naruto could only cry out in indignity as he swatted the hand away. The girl narrowed her eyes as if she realized something.

"Wait a minute…blond, whiskers, and gorgeous blue eyes…are you Uzumaki Naruto?" the girl suddenly asked. Naruto flinched in surprise.

"Y-yeah, I am. How did you know that, onee-chan?" the boy cocked his head in confusion.

"I heard it from a little purple cat. Did you know you embarrassed a young woman this morning, gaki?" Anko teased with a smirk. Naruto was flabbergasted to hear this.

"No way! I didn't do anything to any girl on purpose," the boy huffed with crossed arms, thinking someone else out there was slandering his good name.

"Nah, it's alright...you didn't know. However, I have a piece of advice for you…and it's very imperative you listen to this...," Anko leaned in, whispering. Naruto brought one of his ears in close.

"Gaki, you got that great sense of smell, but if you ever smell any kind of blood on a woman and she doesn't look like she's bleeding from anywhere visible…it's probably very important for your sake that you do not mention it to her, especially with people around," the teen vaguely whispered, confusing the boy even more.

"Something like that happened this morning, but I don't understand, onee-chan! If I smell blood, that means someone is hurt and bleeding, right?" Naruto tried to press for clarification. The older girl quickly shushed him.

"In a way…you may be right about us occasionally hurting…but it's very...VERY personal for all women. I'm doing you a huge favor by asking you to just ignore that scent and don't ever mention it. Don't even think about it. You were lucky the woman this morning didn't cut you up," the girl warned sternly. Naruto cocked his head in bewilderment. _'Yugao-nee was right…he is so adorable!' _squealed Anko inside her mind.

"Even though I could smell it mixed with snakes on you, onee-chan?" Naruto innocently dropped the bombshell. A cold chill went down Anko's spine as her eyes shrank in shock. She didn't even notice the fact he smelled snakes on her as well.

"Excuse me for a moment and stay here, gaki," Anko mechanically said as she straightened up and walked awkwardly into a nearby alley and hid herself from anyone's view. A long moment of silence followed for the very confused young boy before an enraged yell exploded from the alley, scaring Naruto into falling on his backside.

"GOD-FUCKING-DAMN IT, THESE WERE MY FAVORITE!"

Naruto trembled at the girl's sudden temper. Another long moment of silence followed before he saw the teenage girl emerge from the alley, her cheeks bright red with embarrassment. Anko purposely walked right up to the boy and bent down at her hips, looming dangerously over the boy.

"Yes gaki….don't even mention it to me from now on if we ever meet again in the future," Anko slowly ground out with one of her eyes twitching and her cheeks still bright red.

"O-ok, I won't say anything about that to any woman ever, onee-chan," Naruto promised. He wondered what the hell was going on, but if this is a big deal for women, he might as well leave it to them from now on. He had a feeling he'd be better off like this anyway.

"Very good, gaki…now…I want to go home, change, and get some dango so I'll see you around the village once in a while, ok?" Anko said with a strained smile before turning around to walk off, waving goodbye over her shoulder. Naruto, even though he was still confused, waved back.

'_Ok..this is too much trouble for me. I'm never going to bring that up with any girl from now on,' _Naruto sighed as he thought this to his tenant.

'**Good…because that would save your life, and mine by proxy, from enraged and irrational human females,' **the fox said with relief, glad this subject was closed for good for at least a few more years.

Naruto shrugged and stretched his legs a bit before continuing his run.

**A Week Later at Naruto's Apartment**

Naruto entered his apartment, still lightly panting from his latest round of exercises… twenty laps around the village with three sets of hundred crunches, sit-ups, and squats every four laps. He then ended it all with four sets of twenty pull-ups and ten 100m dashes to get his blood really pumping before cooling down on his walk home.

'_Wow…I keep saying this, but you really work fast. I know I would've died if I did all of that just two weeks ago," _Naruto spoke internally as he checked some of his hardening muscles on the body.

'**I'd be lying if I said I expected you to reach this point already. At this rate, I may be finished bringing your body up to appropriate levels in just two weeks, just one month after we started this,' **Kurama admitted. She wondered if it was the elite blood of those two clans in him that allowed him to adapt and mold his body so quickly to anything.

'**In any case, this amount of exercising is more than enough to get you into shape so we'll keep the routine the same until we move on to the next level of your training, boy," **Kurama suggested. Naruto nodded as he took his sweaty t-shirt off and started preparing some lunch. This time it was a sub sandwich packed with meat and vegetables to give him plenty of protein and nutrition. While the boy was eating, Kurama was deep in her thoughts about how best to reveal some information to her container. She knew he wasn't going to be happy, but she felt it needed to be done.

As Naruto finished the lunch, he heard a somehow timid-sounding knocking at the front door. Naruto raised an eyebrow as he wasn't expecting any guest. He went up to the door and opened it slowly. He then smiled broadly.

"Hinata-chan! How are you? What are you doing here?" Naruto cheerfully said. Hinata was standing stock still in her purple kimino, holding a small and cute pink drawstring purse that had a white floral pattern. Her lavender eyes were wide open in shock because she was seeing Naruto standing in front of her totally shirtless. Her cheeks quickly became bright red with embarrassment. She had never seen any male, even her father, topless or beyond. For some reason, she also thought the blonde looked fantastic with his developing muscles. One would hardly think Naruto's body looked like the body of a normal seven-year old. She had to turn away from the confused boy lest she would have fainted from shock and embarrassment.

"A-ano…I'm sorry N-n-naruto-kun…c-c-could y-you p-put a shirt o-on?" the girl stuttered worse than she ever had with Naruto since meeting him. Though she felt somewhat disappointed at having to ask the boy to do that. The boy looked confused then looked down before snapping his head up in surprise. He quickly rushed back into the apartment. He came back a moment later with a clean shirt on and an embarrassed smile.

"Hehe…sorry that was rude of me, Hinata-chan. I forgot I took it off when I got back from my morning routine. Anyway, how are you? How did you find your way here?" Naruto asked of his new guest. Hinata started pressing her two index fingers together.

"I'm sorry for c-coming here u-unannounced. But after that t-t-terrible event the other d-day and we haven't h-heard from you since before that, I-I wanted to see if y-you were a-all right. I asked F-father to allow me to v-vist you. He a-approved and had one of our g-guards escort me here. He's outside," Hinata explained. Naruto was not too surprised that Hiashi knew his address. That, and it's not like the 'demon brat's' address was a secret to the village anyway. He wondered about the 'terrible event' though.

"Does this event has something to do with the Uchiha Massacre I heard about in passing while I was out and about?" Naruto deduced. Hinata replied with a quick nod of her head.

"Yes. It was t-t-terrible how it happened and Uchiha I-i-itachi left only one boy our age alive. Y-you live not too f-far from the Uchiha district so I…I was worried…." Hinata trailed off, her cheek growing red again. Naruto smiled gently at his friend's caring nature.

"As you can see, Hinata-chan, I'm alright. How about this…let's go for a quick walk. I want to see the district, if that's ok with you?" Naruto asked. Hinata put on a small smile and nodded slightly. Naruto quickly slipped his sandals on before closing the door.

"Alright! Let's get going," Naruto declared, but not before turning to a seemingly empty space and bowed his head slightly.

"Work hard, ANBU-san!" Naruto said cheekily before Hinata followed suit and bowed to a different spot.

"Ano…p-please take care of us, ANBU-san," Hinata said very politely, not even registering the fact that there were two ANBUs guarding Naruto for some reason. Two huge sweat drops formed in the air out of nowhere as the two kids walked down the stairs out of the building.

"Fucking nose and eyes…how can we even hide from them?" grumbled a voice in the spot where Naruto bowed to.

"At least the brats aren't making it difficult for us," the other voice said dejectedly as the two ANBUs appeared out of thin air and jumped to the rooftops, preparing to follow the two kids.

Back on the streets with the two kids, they were walking shoulder by shoulder toward the Uchiha district as a Hyuuga escort followed a fair distance behind them, keeping his eyes out for any sign of trouble. The escort also discretely nodded his head at the two ANBUs he saw with his Byakugan up on the roof. They returned the nod.

Hinata could tell something was wrong. She noticed nasty glares directed at her…no…specifically at the boy next to her. This confused her. Did he do something to upset the village with a prank gone too far? No…she could tell the glares of disgust and hatred she saw the villagers direct toward her friend went beyond that. Growing angry at the lack of respect toward her friend, she looked at the blonde next to her. She was expecting him to be bothered by the glares and returning them, but to her surprise, he wasn't doing anything. He was acting oblivious to the glares and she wondered why he was doing this. She could only deduce that these villagers had been doing this for so long that Naruto had simply grown used to this and ignored everyone now.

'_How could this be? Why would a kind person like Naruto get this treatment?' _Hinata thought in despair for her friend. Naruto, as if reading her mind, turned toward her and gave her an assuring smile.

"Don't worry, Hinata-chan. They're just being petty and pissed about something I had no control over a long time ago," Naruto said with a smile. Hinata could tell it was forced for her sake. She couldn't even return the smile as she looked down at the ground.

"Naruto-kun…could you tell-" Hinata's question was interrupted by Naruto's loud voice.

"Alright! We're here!" Naruto quickly said as he ran off toward a particular gate allowing access to a large part of Konoha. Hinata sighed in defeat. She knew that he interrupted on purpose just now. She decided she would have to wait on that question for later.

Hinata caught up with Naruto who was staring in through a blocked gate into the Uchiha district. The entire area in front of the two children was eerily quiet. It wasn't right. An area this large should have at least some sound and signs of activities in the middle of the day. Right now, there was absolutely nothing that told these two children that an entire clan was even living in this area before the Massacre. The streets and the buildings were sparkling clean, as if they had to be cleaned for a reason. The two children had to gulp at the implication of that notion.

"I see you two have decided to satisfy your curiosity about the tragic event here," a calm voice said from behind Naruto and Hinata. They twirled around to face Hyuuga Hiashi calmly staring down at them in his usual clan head's robes.

"Father!" Hinata jumped at the sight of her father.

"Hiashi-sama, what brings you by this way on this day?" Naruto bowed slightly. Hiashi returned the polite bow.

"I was walking this way toward home from a meeting with Hokage-sama. I saw you two and thought I would collect my daughter for the return trip home," Hiashi said with a nod to the Hyuuga escort allowing the man to leave on his own for the Hyuuga compound, now relieved by the clan head.

"Father…" Hinata trailed off at her father's implication that she will have to go home with her father soon. Naruto smiled and scratched the back of his head.

"Don't worry, Hinata-chan. I was going to have you go home after this. I have something I need to do today," Naruto said. Hinata could only nod in disappointment.

"But man…this is really weird. I wasn't too liked by the Uchiha clan but it just is strange to just one day see an entire district with absolutely no life in it," Naruto murmured to no one in particular as he turned back to face the blocked gate.

"I wonder if it could have been avoided," Hiashi mysteriously whispered. Naruto caught that.

"Hiashi-sama?"

"My apologies, but I should not speak ill of the dead, even though my clan and the Uchiha clan were rivals up until two days ago,' Hiashi said carefully. Naruto nodded his head, respecting the clan head's desire to not speak any more of this.

"I am afraid my daughter and I will have to take our leave. I hope to see you around again before long, Uzumaki-san," Hiashi and Hinata bowed their goodbyes before heading off toward the compound, leaving behind a waving Naruto.

'_Alright, fox-sensei, they're gone. Why did you want me to ditch Hinata-chan all of a sudden?'_ Naruto quizzed his tenant.

'**Because there's something we need to talk about and I'd rather that female child doesn't get in the way of that,'** Kurama replied bluntly.

'_Sounds serious," _Naruto thought offhandedly as he continued to look into the empty district.

'_Oi, fox…how do you feel about this? I know you got some strife against people with the Sharingan," _Naruto wondered. Kurama let out a scoff.

'**They had it coming. This clan was cursed…destined to be slain some day. It was never if, but a matter of when since the day the clan was founded. You could only find two different types of Uchiha these days. There are the Uchihas that grew arrogant and complacent with their eyes and relied on them so much they easily get killed in battle early in their lives. The other type desire power so much they would do anything possible to gain an upper hand. Keep an eye on that Uchiha brat who survived this. I will bet you he would look for power anywhere possible for revenge against the one who did this,'** the fox warned. Naruto nodded his head soberly. He figured Hiashi probably had the same thoughts as the fox on this subject.

'**Let's go. I'm done looking at this disgusting reminder of that accursed clan. We need to get to the training field the old fart gave us,'** Kurama requested of her container. Naruto nodded in the affirmative before walking off toward Konoha's training fields.

**Hiashi and Hinata, Heading Toward Their Home**

"Father…" Hinata quietly called out, catching her father's attention. Hiashi slightly turned his head to imply he was listening as they continued their walk.

"When I was walking with Naruto-kun…I saw that he had to deal with looks of hate and disgust from the villagers all around us. They looked very similar to the looks I am getting at the compound….only it was much worse for Naruto-kun. I could not believe he would be someone that did something to have the entire village hate him so much. He doesn't deserve that, right?" Hinata said seriously, all trace of her low confidence gone. She looked up at her father with quiet anger in her lavender eyes directed at the villagers. Hiashi had to raise an eyebrow that Hinata could not see from where she stood. He was impressed with her ability to show some determination lately.

"I have said once before that this is Uzumaki-san's secret to tell you. But I will assure you now that it was not his fault. Do not fret too much for that child because he is much stronger than you realize. He is going out to prove to the entire village that he is not the person they think him to be. Just like you are trying to prove to our entire clan that you deserve to be considered for the position of the clan head in the future," Hiashi said straightforwardly as they approached the compound's gate. Hinata allowed herself to go deep into thoughts over this.

**42****nd**** Training Field**

"So this is the training field I'm to use for the next five years or so," Naruto declared to no one in particular as he walked up to the center of a large clearing in the middle of a dense forest. He could see a large ravine cutting through the earth at the back of the training field.

'**Looks good. We'll put it to good use in two weeks. For now, we just need to talk in your mindscape away from any possible distraction. It's time for you to fix up this shithole and then we will have a serious discussion about something you need to know,' **Kurama spoke her intentions. Naruto nodded his head, figuring he'll get his answers later. He went over to the center of the clearing and sat down in a meditative pose.

'**Good. Just do what I told you about mediation. Keep clearing your mind of everything. Focus on a small tugging you should be feeling from your stomach and visualize yourself grabbing onto that. You should be pulled in here with me after that,' **Kurama instructed. Naruto quickly cleared his mind and, after a few long minutes, he felt the tugging. He felt himself grabbing onto that feeling and felt him slowly being pulled into himself.

Naruto opened his eyes to find himself in the room he was in with Kurama the night they met. He saw the massive fox still in the same place he left her. She was simply looking down at him with her red eyes, her expression impassive. He was still awed by the impressive size and visage of the demon before him. She looked truly majestic and authoritative with her presence.

"**That's flattering,"** Kurama said with a smirk. Naruto face-palmed hard for having forgotten she could read his mind in this mindscape. He put on a sheepish grin and chuckled.

"It's true anyway. So let's get started on changing this room. I can't believe this is what my mind looks like now," Naruto complained as he looked around the room.

"**When left alone, it simply reflects the acclimation of all the experiences you've had in your life up until now. Since you have experienced mostly negative emotions most of your life, this is why the room looks like this. I should inform you this room was in much worse shape two years ago before you started making friends, so the conditions here did improve. Anyway, just go ahead and, as hard as you can, imagine up what we discussed," **Kurama explained through the iron bars at Naruto.

Naruto nodded before clapping his hands together in a snake seal, his fingers intertwined tightly with each other, as he seemed to pray. There was a loud rumble and Kurama could see her side of the room start to crumble and the walls cracked and fell apart. The walls all collapsed away to reveal a beautiful and majestic green forest hidden behind them with sunlight shining down through the tight coverage high above. The trees were so tall Kurama looked like a normal sized fox relative to the size of one of the massive tree trunks. Across the bars, Kurama saw the area around Naruto start to grow grass as the walls on that side of the bars crumbled away to show a massive plain stretching as far as eyes could see, broken up only by a sparkling river running through it in the distance. Kurama had to say she was impressed at the scope of this boy's imagination. He was trying his best to make Kurama comfortable and she appreciated that.

The only thing that remained aside from the massive changes to the mindscape was the giant iron bars between the fox and the boy. Even with the walls crumbling away, the bars just stretched far into the distance on both side and the bars simply faded far up into the sky, never revealing how truly tall the bars were going. Naruto walked up to the bars and put a hand on it.

"Hey sensei, I think I can get these bars out of the way. I have a feeling the seal just has to be simply near you, not just as bars to keep us apart. So with that, tell me how you'd like the seal to be. I doubt you'd want a collar…" Naruto had to pause at Kurama's angry growl at the thought of being collared like a common pet. "…so that's out of the way. How about a ring for one of your fingers, bracelet for your wrist, or something for your tails? An earring? Anything you can think of, I'll try to change these bars into that," Naruto inquired of his tenant's preference.

"**Just a ring for one of my fingers will suffice,"** Kurama threw that out after a moment's thought. Naruto nodded before he started to concentrate hard on the bars. After a long moment of silence, a loud rumbling could be heard, as the bars started to slowly shrink into itself. After some minutes of concentrating, the bars were finally compressed into one giant lumpy ball of steel. A loud screeching sound emitted from the lump as Naruto concentrated on reshaping the seal into something wearable. After a long moment, Naruto and Kurama saw a simple ring dull gray in color emerge from the shaping process. After it was all done, the ring was floating in mid-air. Naruto seemed to be thinking with a hand on his chin, as if he was looking at the ring like an artist. He suddenly snapped his fingers and the ring changed colors to match the bright orange-red fur on Kurama.

"How's that, sensei?" Naruto said, panting lightly as he was a little winded from concentrating so hard for a while.

"**At least it's not a collar. This will do and I will most likely forget it's even there after a few days," **Kurama grumbled as she grabbed the ring out of the air with her right hand and started to put it on her left hand. First she tried the index before moving on to the middle and when that didn't fit either she tried one more finger. She was a little surprised when it fit on her left ring finger so perfectly. She smirked a little and decided to tease her container about this.

"**Naruto-kun…how bold of you…." **Kurama feigned shyness and she somehow managed to show her blush through the bright red fur as she fluttered her eyelids. Naruto could only reply with a confused 'Huh?'.

"**We've only really known each other for two weeks…for you to propose to me so suddenly…" **Kurama continued to intensify her blush as she looked away from Naruto. The boy cried out in shock and face-faulted.

"W-w-what the hell? ! When did I even say anything like that?" Naruto yelled as he got up and wildly flailed both of his hands in front of him, trying to deny that statement. Kurama could not keep it in and let out an uproarious laugh. The boy just stood there in stunned confusion.

"**You should be more careful, boy. If you give any human female a ring that would fit on her ring finger, it may imply that you want to marry that female. If it only fit the ring finger, just make sure it goes on the right, not on the left and you will avoid awkward situations, boy," **chuckled Kurama when her laugh finally died down after some minutes. She transferred the ring from her left hand to her right after she was done with the joke. As she looked at the boy, she smirked upon seeing Naruto red-faced with embarrassment.

"That's…good to know…I'll be careful about that from now on," Naruto mumbled quietly.

"**Alright, Naruto. Time to have that talk. Have a seat somewhere comfortable since this is going to be long," **Kurama ordered with all pretense of the previous joke gone. Naruto straightened up and looked around to see a particularly nice patch of soft grass so he walked over there to sit down on it cross-legged. Kurama simply laid down in front of the boy, her arms crossed under her raised head as she looked down her muzzle at the boy. She cleared her voice.

"**Naruto, this isn't going to be easy for you to hear so I'll just go out and say it. You need to know all of this now so any enemy would not use this information to surprise you and distract you in battle. Now…I know who your parents are. I also know that old fart is keeping it hidden from you because I saw him there when I was sealed into you by your father with the help of your mother," **Kurama seriously said, her gaze locked on the boy's blue eyes. Naruto opened his eyes wide in surprise and confusion.

"Wh-what? Why would Jiji-san hide this…. wait a minute…you said he sealed you into me? The only one that did that is…..oh my Kami…the Yondaime Hokage…." the blond boy mumbled in shock.

"**That's right. The Fourth Hokage, Minato Namikaze, was your father," **Kurama said evenly, her expression still blank as she continued to look down at her stunned container. It took Naruto a long moment to process this information before he spoke up softly.

"So…I finally figure out who my father is… and he's the one who sealed you into me and made me the object of an entire village's hatred and left me alone. Sounds like a fantastic father," Naruto said almost disgruntledly. Kurama narrowed her eyes at her container's disrespect but allowed him to continue.

"Kurama…my mother…who was she?"

"**She was the previous container before you. I was transferred from her great-grandmother, Uzumaki Mito, and sealed into her for about ten years until that day. Her name was Uzumaki Kushina," **Kurama said with a slightly downcast expression at the memory of her previous containers. They didn't interact much with her, but they didn't mistreat her either.

"So…she was alive and there as she helped seal you into me?" Naruto was hoping for a possibility that she could be out there and around.

"**She was dying. That hateful man took advantage of your mother's greatest moment of weakness as the container…childbirth. After your birth, he immediately attacked and snatched Kushina away from your father and he used the Sharingan on me inside her and ripped me out of her. No Jinchuriki survives having the bijuu forcefully extracted. It was only a matter of time for your mother. It was actually amazing she had enough will and strength to live and stand up after that, if only for a little while. She used her last remaining strength to hold me down long enough for your father to complete his sealing ritual that bounded me to you," **Kurama said, still a little downcast. Naruto was processing everything slowly. After a long moment, his eyes started to shed tears and his expression turned into despair. Kurama was afraid of this and she prepared her reply.

"Do…they hate me? Is that why they sealed you in me and left me-WHA!" Naruto's downward spiral into depression was violently interrupted as Kurama's right hand shot out and roughly pinned him under it. Naruto cried out in discomfort as the hand pressed down a little. Kurama leaned over the only free part of the boy, his head, and bared her sharp teeth just several meters above in front of his eyes. Naruto gulped loudly and kept very still under her hand.

"**Listen well, Uzumaki Naruto, for I will only say this once. Your father and mother were some of the most honorable people I have known in my long life. They were well respected, loved by many, and they were looking forward to your birth. They wanted to be your parents and raise you…before that blasted man fucked everything up. The only reason they sealed me into you was because I overheard them saying that they believed in you and that you would be able to control my power one day to keep the village and the world safe. I can say with no doubt…and you'd better believe this…that they truly loved you and only left you alone in this harsh life because they had no choice but to believe in their son. Did you get all of that into that thick head of yours?" **Kurama quietly growled out, her expression deadly serious as she narrowed her red eyes at the boy pinned under her hand. After Naruto took everything in, he slowly nodded his head. The fox let out an annoyed sigh and removed her hand, freeing the boy. An uncomfortable silence developed between the boy and the giant fox. It seemed like hours before Naruto finally looked up at his tenant.

"Jiji-san never told me…why would he hide this from me? If everyone knew, the villagers would have treated me better," Naruto asked with some anger in his eyes for his surrogate grandfather. Kurama shrugged her shoulders.

"**If I have to guess, he was protecting you. Recall what you read about the Fourth the other day," **Kurama ordered of her student.

"The Fourth…" Naruto paused for a moment before continuing. "…my father was considered the strongest Hokage that Konoha ever produced since its founding. He was known all over the world as "The Yellow Flash" due to his use of the **Hiraishin** teleportation jutsu in combination with his personal jutsu, the **Rasengan**. Dad was particularly famous for 'killing' you and single-handedly destroying half of Iwagakure's shinobi force in just a few minutes of battle against him in the Third Great War. Kumo did not like him much either," Naruto raised his eyebrows as he summarized what he learned.

"With all that Dad's done, his enemies would be frothing at the mouth if they ever heard he had a son and would do anything possible to kill me to prevent another 'Yellow Flash'!" Naruto concluded as if he uncovered a very elusive clue in a crime investigation.

"**That's most likely why he hid it from you and everyone else. It wasn't just to protect you but the village as well. The Tsuchikage would have his army march on Konoha and raze it to the ground if he ever heard even a ghost of any rumor about a son having been born and is alive today. That's why you need to keep quiet about your parentage for the time being," **Kurama narrowed her eyes, not taking a 'No' for an answer. Naruto slowly nodded. Kurama knew the reason for his reluctance.

"**Trust me, boy. You may think your life could have been better off if everyone knew and treated you better, but is that really true? Think about this. Do you honestly believe you would be happy if everyone became your "friends" and handed you everything you ever needed on a platter? Just because you're the great Yondaime's son and it's not the result of your own hard work in gaining their recognition?" **Kurama asked of her container.

"No…I can't really imagine myself enjoying that kind of life. Sure it was shitty but I've been so happy to have made even just several real friends," Naruto gave a sad smile to his sensei.

"Thanks for knocking some sense into me, sensei."

Kurama simply nodded her head and laid it on her crossed arms, apparently finished with her revelation.

"Sensei…would it be alright if you could tell me about all you remembered about my parents?" Naruto carefully asked of the fox. She just gave a shrug.

"**Sure. We have some time," **Kurama said with a smirk before she continued on to regale the boy with tales of what she had seen from inside Naruto's mother.

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**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX PLEASE READ BELOW FOR POLL XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

**Everyone…I hope you enjoyed reading that. It was pretty funny to me seeing Anko crossing paths with Naruto like that. It'll be a while before they see each other again though. I got their next couple encounters planned out and the last one will be the important trigger for the two of them to get close from that point on. **

**Now I am putting a quick poll up on my profile page. I have been thinking about having Naruto learn a rather unorthodox kenjutsu style for a shinobi. It would involve him usually dual welding a pair of nigh-indestructible sabers that would slash and slice through nearly everything with ease. Not only that, he would be pretty ferocious with most discarded bladed weapons on the battlefield if he isn't close to any of his sabers. If I have to say, the style would remind me closely of Fullmetal Alchemist's King Bradley's sword fighting. If you do not know of him…here's are some links to see glimpses of why he's a bad ass. He made a tank run from him with just a sword for pete's sake! FAIR WARNING: There are blood flowing freely in these sense and be sure to turn your volume down on the first link. Got some crappy amv playing in the background during the awesome scene. **

**watch?v=lnbGjYcqHF8**

**watch?v=L2-vOjf4SEk**

**watch?v=jsxyxEPZ8Qs**

**The other kenjutsu style I am thinking of for Naruto is probably more suited to a shinobi than the dual sabers. It would be a special quick-draw style with a katana. Not as visually threatening as holding a super-sharp saber in each hand would be but he'd be formidable with the katana all the same and I got some pretty nifty techniques he could learn with the quick-draw.**

**I'm not sure which style the readers may want to see Naruto use so I'll just let them do the picking for me in this case. Neither will impact the rest of the story in any way since it'll play out just the same with either style.**

**Poll will end MONDAY 1 AM Eastern Time. That means you have Saturday and all day Sunday to vote. **

**Please commerce voting and see you next chapter soon! **


	6. Training Montage Pt 1

**Finally got done with this chapter. Been a long week with my real life happening. I finally had enough time to finish this chapter today. Sorry for the delay and I hope you'll enjoy this chapter. **

**I apologize in advance for some errors and possibly some odd dialogue. I'm just too sleepy and I wanted to put this up as quickly as possible. I'll go over this chapter and correct anything I could find the next day. You're welcome to point anything out if you want. **

**Enjoy!**

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**WARNING: This story will contain mature language, sexual themes, and graphic depictions of violence and gore.**

**DISCLAIMER: I do not own Naruto or any of its characters.**

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**Chapter 6: Training Montage Pt. 1**

**In Naruto's New and Improved Mindscape**

It was hours after Kurama had told Naruto all she could about his parents. The boy could be seen lying on his back in the grass with a very contented smile. He simply spent all that time going over what he heard from his sensei. He finally heard some stories about his parents and he was too happy to know who they were after seven years of nothing. His mother and father were more incredible than Naruto could've ever imagined and he was proud to have been born from them.

Kurama had taken a quick nap nearby on the soft grass while the blonde was going through all the details in his mind. She just woke up and just realized that she had much more space and freedom compared to that dark and wet room she was trapped in for seven years. Happy with that thought, she rolled over on her back and started rubbing her back and face against the grass like a cat would, her tails sweeping around lazily. Naruto, having heard the noise, raised his head to see what his tenant was doing and had to chuckle softly. Kurama stopped to open one eye at Naruto. After a moment of staring, she just shrugged and continued her rubbing.

"Don't worry, sensei. I won't tell anyone out there what you do in here. It's not like they would believe me that a giant demon enjoys frolicking around in the grass like a regular fox," Naruto said with a smirk, as if he read her mind this time.

"**That goes without saying. Just remember I know everything you think and say," **Kurama grumbled as she lazily rolled back over on her stomach. She stretched all four legs, opened her jaws wide to the point of almost unhinging in a massive yawn, and stretched all of her large and long tails spread out behind her in an impressive display of her size. Naruto had to watch in silent awe.

"**Whew…that felt good to do after so long in that cramped space. Oi… I feel like clearing my throat so I'm going to show you something that you will be able to do in your beast mode. Get ready to duck for cover," **Kurama said in a mischievous tone.

"Wait a minute…clearing throat? Why do I have to duck…oh…hell…" Naruto trailed off in shock as he watched the massive fox point her muzzle up into the air and her tails curved over her head as if pointing at a certain space just above her open mouth. Naruto felt the air around him start to thicken and his entire body felt like it was vibrating intensely. He saw what looked like a large mixture of dark red and light blue blobs of chakra appear out of thin air that started converging toward the spot Kurama's tails were pointing at. Naruto knew this was trouble and started running for cover behind a nearby tree within the huge forest's treeline.

"OI! What the hell are you trying! ?" Naruto shouted behind him as he dived behind cover. Kurama didn't pay him any mind as she concentrated on her charging. After a few seconds of drawing the chakra, a giant ball of raw energy formed over the fox's head. When it stopped charging, Naruto could see the ball start to shrink with a loud rumble. It kept compressing and it was getting darker and denser as it shrunk in size until it reached 1/10th of the size it was before. Naruto was flabbergasted when he saw Kurama open her mouth wide and closed it around the ball before she visibly swallowed. He watched as the giant fox hunkered down on all four, as if she was a lion ready to pounce. He raised an eyebrow as he saw her neck and cheeks start to visibly balloon out as if she was holding in a massive breath of air. The fox then opened her month and smoke slowly wisped out of it. She slightly twitched her body forward and all went to hell for Naruto.

Kurama expulsed the chakra ball from her mouth with monstrous force, like a giant cannon shot. The noise and the impact from the expulsion immediately tore up a large portion of land in front of Kurama. It also rattled every bone in Naruto's body as he tried desperately to watch through the blinding light of the charka ball leaving the fox's mouth at incredible speed. It wasn't too hard for him to follow it as the speeding chakra ball mercilessly tore up the ground underneath it due to its incredible power. The boy watched in awe as the chakra ball continued on its destructive path unimpeded until it finally disappeared into the distant horizon toward the wide and empty expanses of the plain that Naruto created.

"Whoa…what was th-," was all Naruto got out as he was interrupted when the empty plain lit up in a blinding white flash of light from the chakra ball's explosion that engulfed a good portion of the plain in a quickly expanding dome of raw energy and raging flame. A huge shockwave followed, crashing through Kurama and Naruto. It nearly blew Naruto away despite his cover but Kurama looked unconcerned, as if it was just some gust of wind ruffling her fur. The energy and flame dissipated as quickly as it appeared and all that was left was sullen silence and the sight of a huge plume of smoke bellowing high into the air in the distance, shaped like a mushroom.

"Oh my Kami..I can't believe this…how is this possible? ! That would destroy an entire village in one hit!" Naruto murmured in alarm at this sight after he slowly got out from behind cover. He shot a quick look over at the towering figure of Kurama to see that she looked bored as she cracked her neck, as if to work out a small crick. A cold shiver went down the boy's spine as he seemed to have finally realized for the first time in his life that he just saw a small portion of what the most powerful creature in the world, currently sealed inside his own body, could do.

"Just how the hell did Dad manage to seal you into me? You're way too strong!" Naruto blurted out in disbelief as he slowly walked up next to the giant fox sitting on her haunches. Kurama looked down at the blond boy still staring in amazement at the plume of smoke.

"**As much as I hate to admit this but, despite all of my power, your father only needed a combination of smarts, techniques, and timing to hold me down long enough for the sealing. I tried to destroy your village with the same technique I just used while I was under that man's control but the Fourth used his teleportation technique to simply send it where there was no danger," **Kurama admitted with a slight annoyance at remembering her strongest technique being deflected so easily. She sighed and continued.

"**Absolute and overwhelming power is not the answer to every battle. That's why, even if you could do this with training, I do not recommend going into your beast transformation unless absolutely necessary or you know it would be to your advantage. You should only use this as a last resort, or if you're matched up against another Jinchuriki," **Kurama explained. Naruto whipped his head up at her in surprise.

"There are others like me? !"

"**There are eight other tailed beasts like me and they're likely sealed as well. I am the strongest since I have the highest number of tails among the nine of us. However, the others are no pushovers and should not be taken lightly," **Kurama warned before she seemed to remember something.

"**I remember that the Fourth had a conversation with my previous container about a Kumo nin he encountered in battle during the Third Great War. He said that nin had the ability to transform any part of his body into a giant octopus-like tentacle. I am willing to bet that nin is the Jinchuriki for the Eight-Tailed Beast, or Hachibi. If he could transform like that, he already attained full partnership with the Hachibi like we are trying to achieve. If you encounter that Kumo nin in battle in the future, I suggest full and immediate retreat. Unless you have full control of my power, you will not beat him. Understand?" **

Naruto gulped loudly and nodded. For the all-powerful Kyuubi to stress about retreating from the Hachibi, this Jinchuriki must be serious business.

"How long do you think it may take for me to be able to use your power, sensei?" Naruto asked. Kurama was deep in thought at that question.

"**To be honest, I do not know exactly when. Your chakra coils need to grow and expand to be able to handle the influx of my chakra with yours. The more your coils develop, the more of my power you can handle without exploding. Not only that, my chakra feeds on the malicious nature of mankind. If you are not used to it, the chakra will try to drive you berserk with its negative nature and you may go out of control, even if your comrades are nearby," **Kurama bluntly said. She knew it would be no good to keep quiet about the negatives of trying to attain full beast transformation so she might as well throw it out there now.

"**Normally, I would say it would take twenty years for you to develop well enough to attain the full hundred percent of my power. However, I have noticed lately your body has an incredible capacity for quick adaptability, probably thanks to the elite blood of both clans you were born from. I would not be surprised if you did it in ten years instead," **Kurama said offhandedly. Naruto just stood there in deep thought about what Kurama just said. After a long moment he silently nodded up at the fox, figuring he'd leave the small details for when his sensei is ready to train him to use her chakra.

"**With that out of the way, it's time we figure out your taijutsu and kenjutsu styles soon. The sooner you get started on learning these styles, the faster you will rise in power when you compliment these styles with jutsus and other techniques you will learn later down the road," **Kurama suggested to Naruto, who sat down into an attentive sitting position ready to absorb all his teacher would suggest.

"**I believe I know the perfect taijutsu style for you and I also developed it. It's called the Raging Fox. You will be using my power in the future and this style is the best way to augment it to quickly destroy enemies in front of you. Even without the power, you will most likely overwhelm most opponents with its unpredictable nature and agility. It's not a very rigid style so it's easy to flow from a hit into another. That would keep your opponent from being able to easily guess your pattern. Its only major drawback is that it lacks decent defense. You'll use your reflexes to avoid most strikes but you may take some damage if you get too aggressive and the opponent's good. Fortunately for us, my chakra will be useful in keeping you from being injured too badly," **Kurama explained. Naruto's eyes started to get wider and wider as the fox explained the style's benefits and drawbacks.

"Sounds like a great style! And the nice thing is that no one else would know anything about this style and it would throw everyone off! Please teach me, sensei!" Naruto said excitedly.

"**You will spend your time here learning the stances from me and you will have to practice them outside the mindscape since muscle memory is very important for learning martial arts and you can't develop that in your own mind. Same goes for any kenjutsu style as well," **Kurama pointed out. This didn't put a damper on Naruto's excitement.

"What about the kenjutsu style? Do you have any recommendation?" Naruto inquired.

"**I don't personally care for kenjutsu but I have seen many styles in my long life. I will show you the memories of all the weapon masters I have run into until you feel a connection with a style you can start out with and we will develop a training regimen for that," **Kurama reasoned.

"So how would I train here? No offense but you're super huge and I would get squashed if I even tried to spar with you," Naruto said with a chuckle. Kurama grinned toothily.

"**When you linked your senses with mine, I gained a small degree of control over this mindscape. Just enough to form something like this…" **Kurama stated, as she seemed to concentrate on a spot in front of her and something could be seen forming with wisps of dense smoke whirling around tightly in one spot. Naruto was stunned to see a human form out of the whirling smoke. The human looked like a very plain and nondescript man… just someone you would easily lose in a crowd. The man had on a blank expression and he did not seem to pay any notice to a giant fox behind him or the surprised little boy sitting next to him. He had the feeling of a puppet being controlled by an invisible force.

"**I can also infuse it with my knowledge of any particular style and set this apparition upon you to train you in that style," **Kurama explained as her creation suddenly moved into an odd stance of getting on all fours. Before Naruto could think, the 'man' suddenly pounced toward the boy, hands out like claws. Even the fingernails looked sharpened. Naruto cried out in surprise and fell back onto the grass before the apparition disappeared when it was about to land a nasty hit. Kurama chuckled lightly before wagging her index finger in the air.

"**You're not ready yet for either styles. First we have to finish your conditioning then we will start working on developing your body specifically to use Raging Fox effectively in battle. After about six months of adapting your body to Raging Fox, we will start on the kenjutsu style you pick. Just remember it has to augment your taijutsu. Raging Fox will be aggressive, wild, and unpredictable, just like how your personality is. Your own personal kenjutsu style should also match that aspect as well. Keep that in mind while we search my memories for the style that fits you, ok? Before we forget, you also will start to learn to mold chakra during all of this. You will use chakra control exercises to improve your chakra usage and learn some basic jutsus." **

Naruto nodded, his eyes looking serious, but barely hiding the excitement he had inside.

"**Alright, it's time for you to get out of here. You have been sitting out there in the middle of the clearing for around three hours now," **the fox suggested. Naruto quickly nodded and gave a bright smile as he started to fade out. Kurama smirked before she looked out over the ruined landscape she caused with her attack. A sweat drop formed over her head.

"**Maybe I should've asked that boy to restore this before he left….oh well," **Kurama shrugged.

**Two Weeks Later, Back at the 42****nd**** Training Ground**

"Oi…please tell me you're kidding me, sensei," Naruto pleaded of his tenant as he stood at the edge of a large and deep ravine next to the training ground. It looked truly menacing and Naruto seriously believed he'd die if he slipped and fell from here.

'**I'm not. Now that you're done with your conditioning, we are now training to use all the muscles you would need to use for Raging Fox. A major part of that style is the ability to feint and move in unpredictable patterns around an opponent. You need strong limbs able to latch on to most surfaces and bounce off in the same instant. So, in addition to your usual workouts, you will be climbing down to the bottom of this ravine and back up several times, not just facing up, but also facing left, right, and down at random intervals. You will need to get used to the effect gravity will have on your body from any direction. Now get your ass down there," **Kurama ordered with a tone that didn't allow any talk back. Naruto gulped and started easing himself over the edge….and promptly yelped in surprise as he slipped off with no warning. It was only by luck he managed to grab onto a thin ledge below him before he fell any further into the 300-meter deep ravine.

"Oi! Are you trying to have me killed? !" Naruto shouted out loud as he managed to pull himself up by just his fingers onto the ledge.

'**I don't mind having you suffer a little, but remember, you die…I die. So I wouldn't have you do this if I wasn't sure about your survivability. Please do not betray my faith in you, boy,' **Kurama said coolly.

"Yeah, I'm getting that warm and fuzzy feeling from you, sensei," Naruto's tone dripped with sarcasm as he precariously climbed down to the next ledge.

"**Oh, and to master this level, you must be able to make it to the bottom and back up in under ten minutes each time, in whatever direction I tell you to face as you climb. We will keep this up until you can do it ten times in a row, then we will move on to the next level," **Kurama almost amusedly added on at the end. She enjoyed seeing her container's face start to form tick marks.

"DAMN YOU, FOX!" was heard echoing from a lonely ravine in the middle of a forest outside Konohagakure.

**One Month Later, Same Place**

Naruto was resting on his backside at the top of the ravine, panting heavily. He thought it was impossible, but he managed to climb down to the bottom and back up in under ten minutes, in any direction he faced, more than ten times in a row. He had just established a new personal best of six minutes and twenty seconds.

'_How's that? I could do this in my sleep now! I beat your not-so-subtle attempts at killing me! Do your worst, damn fox!" _Naruto yelled victoriously in his mind. His exuberant mood quickly disappeared as an odd and knowing chuckling from his tenant unnerved him.

'**Did I say we'd be done with this? We only got you up to a passable enough level to start practicing the katas of Raging Fox effectively. You still need a lot more work to make this style fast and deadly. You only completed the first level, boy," **Kurama ominously stated with an evil smirk.

'_Oh Kami…there's more of this? ! You know how many times I nearly died doing this, because you were there for every damn time!' _the boy pleaded with the fox, hoping for some mercy.

'**It gets easier…maybe,' **Kurama innocently added the last word as Naruto frowned in annoyance. **'First, we need something from that old fart. We'll move on to the next level tomorrow. We have already discussed the basics of this style, but tonight you will start learning the katas for real, both on feet and on all fours. Let's have some fun for now, though. Try jumping as high as you can into those trees,' **Kurama suggested. Naruto raised an eyebrow. He certainly did feel stronger and more agile, but did he really improve that much? _'Only one way to find out.'_

Naruto quickly got up and ran toward the treeline into the forest beyond. As he neared, he jumped as hard as he could and he was promptly shocked to find himself high in the air and flying straight at a tree trunk. Instinctively, he twisted his body just in time to latch onto it lightly with all four before instantly jumping off again toward another trunk. He repeated this several time, marveling at how easy it was to do this, before he finally caught on to a high tree branch and flipped under and up to land on it smoothly.

"Wow! Now I can easily jump around like these veteran nins!" Naruto exclaimed out loud as he jumped forward to continue doing another series of acrobatics deeper into the forest. Kurama had to admit she was enjoying her container's exhilaration over this. '_**Now this should motivate him more. He'll still hate me tomorrow, though,' **_Kurama smirked, before she barely sensed something far off in the distance to the right of Naruto.

'**Oi, Naruto. Would you mind going toward your right for a while? I sense something in that direction,' **the fox requested of his tenant. Naruto nodded after only a moment's thought, figuring it made for a nice break in the past month of nothing but climbing and exercises. He shot off in that direction, making use of his body's newfound agility to effortlessly skim across the branches high up in the trees. It was not long before the boy was surprised when the trees suddenly disappeared as he jumped into a wide-open space and landed roughly on the ground, rolling a few times.

"Whoops…gotta be prepared for that kind of thing," Naruto murmured to himself as he quickly got up and lightly dusted his clothes off. He looked up to see a large clearing between the forest he was in and the next one. However, this forest had an ominous feeling and the trees were much bigger and taller than the ones he had been jumping on. He could not see deep into the dark and foreboding forest. The atmosphere was made more threatening by the presence of a tall metal chain-link fence wrapping all the way around the forest as far as the boy could see from where he was standing. It had signs that called this the 44th Training Ground and they were also barring entry due to the dangers inside the forest. He saw graffiti on one of the signs that read 'Forest of Death'. That shiver going down his spine was made all the worse as he felt the fox inside him smirk mischievously.

'_Oi…I can feel your evil smile. What the hell are you thinking?' _Naruto unsteadily asked of his merciless sensei.

'**Nothing…just thinking we found a good place to train your battle senses and help prepare you to take lives. I can sense all kinds of wildlife inside this forest that would be out for your blood as soon as you set a foot in there,' **Kurama said almost too excitedly.

"So extreme rock climbing wasn't enough for you, now you're trying to have me killed by going in there and face Kami knows what!" Naruto yelled out loud in angst, his voice echoing all around him. His response was a chorus of growls and roars emitting from inside the dark forest.

"Oh yeah? I'll destroy all of you, bastards!" Naruto yelled flippantly as he flipped both of his middle fingers at the forest. Kurama chuckled amusedly at the boy's antics.

'**We won't be coming back here for a long while. I'm just filing this location away until we get you up to a good enough level to survive anything in there,' **mused Kurama as the blonde turned around to head back into the forest he was in.

'_So I'll be spending some time in there. You said something about battle senses and taking lives. Aren't they just animals? Granted…they sound incredibly vicious and violent, but they're not humans,' _Naruto pointed out to his tenant as he continued jumping back to the 42nd.

'**You could spend all of your time training for your first encounter with a human and you will…not if…will still freeze up due to inexperience. A creature out for your head is about the same as a human going after you, because in the end, it's either kill or be killed. Going in there will not only help tune up your training, it will improve your survival instincts and ease your nerves when facing humans for the first time later on,' **Kurama reasoned. Naruto had to admit she was right. He won't like the idea of killing, but as long as he understood it was to protect his precious ones, he would do it.

**Later in the Hokage's Office**

The Hokage was sitting at his desk still wrangling with his worst enemy, the paperwork, when Naruto quietly entered the office.

"Jiji-san! I'm here to report my training so far and the fox said to get something from you," Naruto declared as he walked up to the Hokage's desk. The Third put a hand up for quiet as he finished the paper he was working on. The boy respectfully complied. After a moment, Sarutobi finally looked up at the blond boy and smiled gently.

"Ah, Naruto-kun. It's hard to believe it's been already two months since you started training with the Kyuubi. How is that going?" the old man inquired as he carefully checked the boy's body from where he sat. He was already impressed with Naruto's physical condition. There seemed to be almost no wasted muscle anywhere. All the muscles that developed were the ones needed for the styles this boy is learning. He hated to admit it, but the Kyuubi made for a good teacher.

"It's going great! Despite the fox's attempts to kill me by dropping me into a ravine, I endured and I'm feeling really good. I can jump through forests like most of the veteran shinobi I see, I'm feeling really fast and strong, and I'm now starting to learn my taijutsu style. I also started to mold my chakra but I haven't done anything with it yet, though," Naruto reported on his progress. The Third was impressed with this seven years old boy. He had already started to mold chakra two years ahead of most of the children.

"Would you mind molding as much of your chakra as possible? I'd like to see what level your reserves are at," Sarutobi kindly requested of the boy. The blond boy nodded and put his hands up in a ram seal. After a moment of concentrating, the Hokage could feel massive amounts of energy radiating from this young boy. He also felt some of the ANBU guards shifting slightly uncomfortably in their hiding spots. _'Amazing…this is already high Chunin level. He could be high Jonin or even Kage level by the time he's in his teens.' _

"This is just with _your _chakra, correct?" the Hokage tried to confirm, discreetly asking if the Kyuubi was somewhat responsible. Naruto caught the meaning as he dropped the molding.

"Yeah, it's all mine," Naruto said with a smirk. The Hokage could tell the boy was looking forward to seeing what he could do when combining his power with the Kyuubi's.

"I have to admit I am very impressed with your amount of chakra. However, I should warn you that it would be difficult to efficiently control your chakra at that level now. At this point, you may not be able to effectively use medical ninjutsu or genjutsu since they both require very fine chakra control. Even some low level jutsu may be out of your reach now since they can only be used with small amounts of chakra," the Hokage said to the boy's slight annoyance at having his progress impended by his own traits.

"In addition to being proficient enough in knowledge, taijutsu, and throwing, you are required to know three specific low-level jutsus to graduate from the academy. **Henge** and **Kawarimi** shouldn't be any trouble after some practice, but I am particularly worried about **Bunshin**," Sarutobi explained as he leaned back in his chair.

'_Know any of these jutsus? I wouldn't mind practicing them on my own time,' _Naruto asked inwardly.

'**Yes. They're very simple. The old fart is right about ****Bunshin****, though. I can already tell it will be impossible to use that jutsu for you with your insane amount of chakra. Unless you have been doing chakra control since you were born, you won't be able to succeed with your huge chakra reserves. The same goes for medical jutsu and genjutsu. They're out too. I will teach you a substitute for ****Bunshin**** and it's infinitely more useful. We will wait on that until you start classes, though. Right now, all you need is to work on your taijustu, kenjutsu, and chakra control. It's so we can build very solid foundations before we move on,' **Kurama lectured. Naruto had to work at holding his impatience back.

"I assume the Kyuubi knows these jutsus and you were discussing them with her, " the Third inquired curiously as he noticed the boy's expressions change slightly while he remained silent.

"Yes. She just told me she knows **Bunshin** is impossible for me. I'll have to take her word on that…her being linked to me ever since I was born and all that," Naruto said with a shrug.

"That's unfortunate. There are other variations to the **Bunshin **technique, however. You should be able to pass with any of these. It's just a matter of figuring out which one suits you," the Hokage offered.

"Yeah. She told me she knows a substitute and will teach me that when the academy starts. She won't tell me any more than that," Naruto replied. Sarutobi nodded… satisfied the boy would have a solution.

"That's all I got to say about what I've been doing. The fox also told me to come by here and pick up something to continue my training in the ravine," Naruto added. The Third raised an eyebrow. _'This boy already reached that level in just one month?'_ he thought as he stood up from the desk and moved over to a cabinet. He opened it up and took out several odd looking straps and a vest.

"This is for you, Naruto-kun. I have to say the Kyuubi knows what she's doing with you. This is an old-fashioned method but it works," the Hokage commented as he handed the equipment to the boy. The boy grunted as he struggled to hoist the deceptively heavy equipment over his shoulder.

"What is this for?" Naruto asked quizzically as he looked over the equipment with curiosity.

"These, Naruto-kun, are what you will be wearing as you continue your training in the ravine. You put the vest on and the straps on your wrists and ankles. Then you add chakra to the chakra weights inside these to get heavier depending on how much you add," the Hokage explained. He had to hold back an amused chuckle as he watched a look of horror start to grow on the small boy's face before he slumped his shoulders, his face downcast.

"Both of you are trying to kill me …who's next? Hinata-chan?" Naruto murmured dejectedly.

**Later This Evening at Naruto's Apartment**

'_Why did I have to say that?' _Naruto cried inwardly while one of his eyes was twitching as he stared with barely restrained horror down at a bento full of….mysterious substances sitting on his dining table. He swore he saw something alive twitching in the dark and murky fluid and the smell was simply too much for his sensitive nose. He had to subtly breathe through his mouth, which wasn't much better as he could almost taste the odor. He had to make some effort to move his eyes away from this box to the one person who brought it here, the familiar indigo-haired girl named Hyuuga Hinata. She was sitting to his side, pressing her two index fingers together nervously.

"A-ano…if it's ok w-with you, please try it. I-it's my first time cooking anything," Hinata softly said with a blush. Naruto gulped and wondered where he went wrong in becoming better friends with Hinata. Since they met, they've been spending at least a few hours a week playing together and hanging out. They even sparred lightly once in a while. It was a good relationship and he just recently introduced her to Ino, Shikamaru, and Chouji. She got along well with all of them, especially Ino. Lately she's been allowed to come over to his apartment to play and talk, giving her a chance to get away from the harassment of her clan. Now he wondered what he did wrong to have three people unwittingly try to kill him this day.

"H-hinata-chan, not that I don't appreciate this, but I'm wondering why your dad didn't get to be your first test su-… I mean… taster," Naruto carefully asked of his would-be murderer as he kept an alert eye on the odd substance for any possible attack. Hinata allowed a slightly surprised expression before looking thoughtful.

"I-I did actually ask F-father to try this first, but he said that h-he ate already and he thought you would a-appreciate it and suggested that I bring it over," Hinata said with an expectant smile, her lavender-tinted eyes shining with innocence. Naruto sighed in annoyance at the fact that Hiashi just blatantly passed the buck on to him.

'_Hiashi, I'm going to reiterate that you are a vicious, evil, and sadistic bastard and I'm going to find a way to get you back for this some day!' _Naruto vowed. Kurama just chuckled.

'**You might as well tell her no. Better to hurt her feelings a little and offer suggestions of improvement than to actually die of poisoning from this,' **Kurama suggested. Naruto tried to look into Hinata's innocent eyes and promptly lost his resolve to refuse this meal.

'_I can't do it, sensei. I learned it's important for a guy to appreciate a girl's cooking, no matter how bad it is,' _Naruto promised in his head. He picked up his pair of chopsticks and dunked them into the foreign substance. He shivered when the chopsticks encountered resistance going in, as if it was actually more of a slimy substance than liquid. He picked a piece of…something...out of the bento with a horrible sucking sound as it was literally pulled out of the brown slime.

'**Oi…you're seriously not going to do this, are you? Don't believe the crappy mangas you read in the library about having to eat a female's cooking no matter what! There's no guarantee I could keep you alive with this one!' **Kurama raised her voice in alarm, actually afraid for her container's wellbeing. She didn't get a chance to say any more as Naruto chomped down on whatever it was on his chopsticks. The effects were immediate.

Naruto's eyes rolled up into his head as he fell backward in his chair, crashing onto the floor like a rag doll. He went into a brief seizure before becoming very still, his eyes still completely white and froth coming out of his open mouth. Hinata, having watched all of this up close, sat in silence for a moment before she finally realized what just happened.

"NARUTO-KUN!/**NARUTO!" **both females cried at the same time as Hinata rushed to his side.

**Elsewhere in a Certain Hyuuga Residence**

Hiashi's stomach growled as he read reports at his desk. He elected to skip dinner for the sake of his own safety. As soon as he saw the result of his daughter's cooking, he immediately went into full retreat and, with his best possible Hyuuga composure, lied through his damn teeth that he wasn't hungry and suggested a poor victim in Naruto.

He felt his nose twitching a little. 'Uzumaki-san must be thinking about how to get back at me,' he mused and smirked a little.

**Five Months Later at the 42****nd**

After spending a week in the hospital thanks to Hinata's…unique cooking, Naruto had to waste another week getting his body back into peak condition before he could wear the training weights. At first, he started out with forty pounds. It took him two months to get used to the extra weight. He finally was able to complete ten round trips in a row to the bottom of the ravine and back up, under the usual ten minutes limit each time. After that, Kurama ordered him to put twenty more pounds on until he got used to the weight and then repeat. The last three months were spent getting him up to the total weight of 100 lbs.

Meanwhile, he worked on the Raging Fox katas extensively. He quickly became proficient with the style, which truly impressed Kurama who kept piling on harsher training with even multiple apparitions in Naruto's mindscape and the boy did not falter once. It was also discovered over the months of training that he could learn jutsus and train his chakra control in his mindscape as well as on the outside. Muscles didn't limit chakra and its control, so any knowledge Naruto gained in his mind added up to the real world applications. Kurama and the boy quickly made use of that fortunate development and Naruto already learned the leaf exercise, tree walking, and was now mastering water walking in his spare time. He also started working on **Kawarimi** and **Henge**. At this rate, he would be able to use them without seals before the first year of academy would end, still well before most other students his age would even get started on learning chakra molding and the jutsus.

Kurama and Naruto were also pleasantly surprised to discover that, thanks to the fox's unique chakra, the boy was able to form a solid **Henge** compared to the usual illusion usually cast instead. Only anyone with the Byakugan or Sharingan could see through it due to the blonde's chakra signature and only the most experienced shinobi would be able to find the few missing details on the henged form, if there were anything missing in the first place. Naruto was excited about the notion of being a super spy able to go behind the enemy line at will. The fox was simply pleased about the possible pranks and bloodbaths her container could induce in the future. However, she made an unusual request of Naruto.

**Back to that conversation**

"What? ! You want me to keep this quiet from Jiji-san! ?" the blond boy blurted out loud as he almost tripped on a tree branch and had to recover quickly before he could continue jumping through the trees toward the training ground. They had just finished a successful test run with the solid **Henge**. Naruto used the **Henge **to transform himself as a plain twenty-something man and walked everywhere in the village, especially in full view of as many shinobi as he could find. He even lost his two ANBU guards following him at the very beginning.

Only two Hyuugas seemed to notice him when they happened to have their Byakugan activated both times. Naruto was frustrated to discover that, with a simple **Henge, **everyone greeted and acknowledged him warmly wherever he went. The difference in treatments toward the blond pariah and a regular everyday man was extremely jarring. Pushing that out of his mind, he was planning on telling the Hokage of this discovery when Kurama redirected him toward the training ground and made the request.

'**I know what you're going to say and I understand the great potential this has as a spying tool. However, just think about this for a minute and you will see that this is detrimental to your own personal goals…and mine as well,' **the fox alluded to something that she knew Naruto wouldn't agree with.

"Ok…so let's focus on the obvious benefits…I can go pretty much anywhere I want without enemies noticing if I'm careful. The higher-ups would love the potential for this in spying. It has limited uses in fights and on the battlefield, though," Naruto had to admit he couldn't think much use for the **Henge **in a fight. If he could spy like this all the time, even his surrogate grandfather would have no choice but to send him out on long-term spying missions to make full use of this once-in-a-lifetime potential. Realization hit him quickly.

'**I see you caught on, boy. I believe when the old fart reports your modified ****Henge ****to the council as part of his job, they will most likely have you sent out on long missions. I wouldn't be surprised if they train you now and ship you out within the year. You will only be here in the village a handful of times for the rest of your shinobi career and would be unable to protect your friends if there was trouble. Plus, you will not be able to train as much under ****Henge ****and reaching your full potential will be much harder, maybe even impossible,' **Kurama broke down the cons for her container. Naruto had to frown at that. On one hand, he wanted to help his village as much as he could but, on the other, his personal goals of being a powerful frontline shinobi conflicted with that. In the end, it was a quick decision for him as he reached the ground. He would keep the modified **Henge **to himself and use it only when he needed to.

**Present**

Naruto was seen hoisting himself over the edge of the ravine onto solid ground easily, as if the extra hundred pounds he was wearing was nothing. He let out a tired sigh as he wiped sweat and dirt from his forehead.

'_That was the tenth time in a row, sensei. I don't know how, but I also beat my best time even when I'm wearing all of this,'_ Naruto had to admit it almost scared him how much he grew with his body. His body did not look like a normal child's now. He grew a little taller, putting him at the same height as Shikamaru, currently the tallest of his friends. Lean and powerful muscles could be seen everywhere on his body yet he still looked agile and slim. He could heavily damage a dense tree easily thanks to his knowledge of the Raging Fox and his increased strength.

'**Good job, Naruto. We'll keep the weight the same for a while until you grow some more. For now, just do this twice as a daily routine. Better to just let your body gradually grow used to this level instead of constantly stressing it with more weight. As I said before, your ultimate goal is to be able to move with three times your fully grown body's weight on you as if it was nothing. You would be very dangerous without the weight on, and even more deadly when you start drawing on my chakra,' **Kurama stated matter-of-factly before continuing. **'Take the weights off and go down the ravine and back up as fast as you can. See if you can't do this in under a minute.'**

Naruto's eye twitched at his tenant's challenge. He started stripping the weights off and stretched to get a feel for his new and improved body. He did not get to make use of his body's full strength much. He had to practice the katas that he learned in the mindscape with the weights on and Kurama ordered him to not use full strength if he could help it the rest of the time. For him, this would be the first time he got to truly use his body in months.

**In the Forest Leading to the 42****nd**** Training Ground**

A small indigo-haired girl with white eyes could be seen pushing through some bushes in the dense forest. Hyuuga Hinata has been slowly making her way toward the clearing where her friend Naruto was training, carrying an oversized bento. She knew Naruto was out there training again and that he wouldn't have any lunch with him as usual.

After that unfortunate incident with her first bento five months ago, she felt so responsible and guilty. Even with Naruto's assurances to her tearful expression in the hospital room, Hinata strived to improve her cooking as quickly as possible and, soon afterward, she was able to cook decent meals. Hanabi now made requests for their lunches together and she enjoyed anything Hinata cooked so far. Even their father ever so slightly nodded in approval when he occasionally had whatever Hinata made.

When she found out from Naruto that he was training out here, she decided to make a bento lunch for him once or twice every week. The first time she showed up in front of Naruto with a bento, she was stunned when Naruto immediately took the bento and dug in. Even though she knew she improved, she thought Naruto would be wary of her cooking after the last time, but he just ate it all without any hesitation. It was at that moment she felt very happy and was nearly fainting from overjoy when he yelled 'It's so good!' to the entire world in the clearing. Even now, her heart would still race as much as it did the first time whenever Naruto smiled brightly at the sight of her appearing with lunch for him.

When Hinata was getting close to the clearing, she decided to use her Byakugan to check if it was okay for her to enter the clearing. After searching a little, she saw Naruto standing at the edge of the ravine with her zoomed-in vision. She smiled as she watched him start to strip the weights he was wearing and stretched. She figured he was finished with that dangerous exercise. She always was apprehensive when she watched him training, thinking this could hurt or even kill him at any moment.

She frowned when she watched Naruto walk back up to the very edge of the ravine. Her eyes widened in surprise as she gasped when Naruto suddenly jumped up into the air and seemed to be 'diving' into the ravine. Her body broke into a run before she even realized it and she was panting in panic as she burst into the clearing, making a beeline for where Naruto jumped off. Somehow she held on to the bento she was holding through all of this. As she was about to reach the ravine, she yelped in shock and fell back onto her backside when a yellow blur jumped up high into the air from the ravine. She craned her neck to see what it was and almost broke into tears of relief when she saw it was Naruto as he did an acrobatic flip in the air before landing gently on the ground.

"Wow! I got to the bottom and back up here in less than a minute! That's amazing!" Naruto yelled loudly to no one in particular, not noticing that Hinata was still on her backside behind him, staring at the jubilant blonde in shock. It was a few more long seconds before Naruto finally smelled lavender in the air and knew that scent to be Hinata's. He stopped celebrating and took a look around to finally notice his friend sitting on the ground behind him in dumbfounded shock, her white eyes and light pink lips trembling. It took him a moment to understand exactly what could have happened. He assumed he probably scared Hinata badly but he hoped to play it off and sheepishly scratched the back of his head.

"Um…sorry?" he tried before a crying Hinata tackled him to the ground hard.

"Don't do that! That scared me to death!" Hinata tried to angrily say, but she was just too relieved to see her friend all right. She let herself cry for a moment on Naruto's chest as he guiltily patted her on her back. She finally sat up, straddling his torso as he laid flat on the ground.

"What dangerous thing were you doing just now?" Hinata said with a frown as she looked down at the still sheepish Naruto. Hinata's usual stutter had all but disappeared in the time she spent with Naruto and her new friends. Now she would only stutter when she was extremely nervous. To say her father was slightly ecstatic, shown by a slight rising of his eyebrows and a small smirk, about Naruto's effects on Hinata would be to say Senju Tsunade had a slight gambling problem.

"Hehe…I was finally allowed to take the weights off. I decided to give what I could do at full power a try. I climbed down to the bottom and back up in under one minute. I can't believe how fast I did that!" Naruto exclaimed with an excited smile. Hinata had to smile at his attitude about all of this. She wondered just how much stronger he was going to keep getting. Part of her liked, even found it very attractive, that he could be very powerful, but another part dreaded it. It would mean he would attract attention from enemies and she feared for his safety in the future.

"Hinata-chan…?" Naruto's gentle voice broke Hinata out of her thoughts. "Sorry, but if you don't mind, could you get off me? I can't move," Naruto tried to ask delicately. It took the Hyuuga heiress a second to realize she was still straddling her friend and she jumped off with a blush.

"S-s-sorry about that. I forgot…," she mumbled in embarrassment, her stutter coming back briefly. Naruto simply defused any awkwardness when he got up and made a beeline for the bento sitting on the ground nearby. He then earnestly began eating his lunch and Hinata joined in with a happy smile a moment later.

As Hinata was eating her half of the lunch, she noticed that her friend seemed to be staring at her somewhat. She started to blush and wondered what Naruto could be thinking.

"Ano…Naruto-kun, is there a reason why y-you were staring at me?" Hinata timidly asked as she stared down at her bento, too shy to meet Naruto's steady gaze. She heard Naruto chuckle slightly and knew he was striking his usual sheepish gesture.

"Sorry about that, Hinata-chan. I've seen other female Hyuugas with long hair and you're the only one with short hair. I was just thinking how you'd look with long hair and I think it's easy to imagine you like that," Naruto honestly said as he went back to eating his portion of the lunch. Hinata's blush intensified as she wondered if Naruto preferred longhaired girls. Truth be told, she thought about growing her hair out some and she now felt a bit more reassured that Naruto could imagine her with a style like that. A few more minutes of silence followed, as they both were deep in thoughts. Hinata finally decided to try to satisfy her curiosity.

"Ano…I was just wondering who your sensei is. I have never seen anyone else other than just you working out here alone. This person must be amazing to make you so much stronger in just six months," Hinata asked with some nervousness, afraid she may be prying. Naruto looked up from his lunch and allowed an embarrassed smile at her compliment.

"Sorry, it's kind of a secret. There's a reason for that and a kid like me actually isn't even supposed to be here. It was only because of Jiji-san and my "special" circumstances that I was given permission to train," Naruto apologetically said and felt very guilty at seeing Hinata's expression change to one of sadness. It felt like kicking a small puppy to him.

"I see..." Hinata dejectedly said as she looked down at her lunch with a downcast expression, her curiosity once again prolonged.

"Hinata-chan, it's not that I don't trust you. Jiji-san asked me to make sure information about me doesn't come easily to anyone, even my friends. It is S-ranked after all. You'll find out everything about me in time, I'm sure. Just be patient and you'll get all your answers," Naruto sincerely said with a sad smile. Hinata felt a little better and nodded slightly. After a long moment of silence, she spoke up.

"Ano…Father was saying he would like to see you and see how you're doing. Hanabi-chan has been asking the same thing. It's been a few weeks since you came by our place. How about I make dinner and you come over tonight?" Hinata offered her invitation. Naruto allowed his usual bright smile and nodded.

"Is there anything specific you'd like?" Hinata inquired, hoping to make whatever Naruto would like for the dinner. Naruto had to take a moment and think, before inspiration struck him. He barely managed to hide his mischievous smile as he made his request. Hinata brightened up at the fact she would have an easy time making this dish and make it as delicious as she could but she'd make sure.

"Are you sure, Naruto-kun? I could do something more complicated."

"That's what I'm in the mood for, Hinata-chan. I'm sure your family would absolutely love this too," Naruto assured, his lips almost twitching at what he's planning.

The rest of the lunch was spent in comfortable silence before Hinata excused herself since she had to go back for her own training. Naruto sent her off with a wave and a smile, standing alone in the clearing.

'**You know as well I do she wouldn't care about the great and terrible Kyuubi being sealed into you and that you're also being taught by the same 'monster'. In fact, it would answer most, if not all, of the questions she had since meeting you, and it would help her understand why you're hated. I daresay she would stand even more firmly at your side to help you deal with the ignorant fools that wish for your death,' **Kurama suddenly spoke up, offering her view on this.

'_That last part is exactly why I am not feeling great about telling her. That would mean she has to deal with hatred of her own for being closely associated with the 'demon brat'. She's already dealing with her clan. She doesn't need the whole village after her too. I can't stand that kind of thought. It probably didn't help that I've been pranking the entire village all this time too, making my reputation worse,' _Naruto explained his view on this matter. Kurama just shrugged, deciding she'll just leave this up to the boy's discretion. She suddenly chuckled at a memory.

'**I rather enjoyed the time you used the ****Henge**** and snuck into some stores that used to kick you out all the time. You then discreetly lowered all of the prices to just ten yen. The chaos afterward with all these people about to riot over the 'sale' was very pleasing to watch. They knew it was you but they couldn't pin anything on you due to your very excellent cover,' **Kurama said with a particularly nasty smirk. She would never admit it, but she enjoyed seeing those who mistreated her container get their reckoning more than any other times. Naruto smiled at the memory too as he got up to stretch and started his katas training for the afternoon.

**Later Tonight at the Hyuuga Main House**

Hiashi's left eye twitched as he had on a very stony expression, trying not to betray his displeasure at this development to those around him. In front of him on the dining table sat a plate. It was a very simple entrée and he was sure that Hinata cooked this very well with her developing but already excellent cooking skills. Everyone else at the table would eat this and call it great tasting, except for him.

Hiashi's eye twitched again as he stared down at the abomination on the plate with barely restrained contempt. The entrée combined two things he disliked the most, cheese and eggs, into one to make a large and cheesy omelet with rice on the side. Naruto's eyes caught Hiashi's slight contempt for his dinner and had to hold back a smile, victorious that the information he painstakingly sweet-talked out of the clan's cooks was correct. He'd enjoy watching this.

Hinata had just finished setting the plates down for Naruto and Hanabi sitting to Hiashi's left at the large table before she sat down between her father and Naruto. The blonde was chatting quietly with Hanabi about what she had started to learn in her recent lessons with the Gentle Fist. Hiashi hated having to do this, but he would pretend that he forgot he ate earlier and was still feeling full. He hoped to get out of eating this…this abomination. Unfortunately for the Hyuuga clan head, Naruto seemed to have excellent timing.

"Oh…Hinata-chan, this looks so good! I can tell your dad's going to love this and I bet he's really hungry too. I haven't seen him eat anything since I got here long ago," Naruto exclaimed innocently to Hinata's reddening face, though Hiashi swore he saw a ghost of a mischievous smirk on the boy's lips. His eye twitched again at the boy's rather 'convenient' statement. He wondered if the boy planned this, but it shouldn't be possible though. Very few knew of his immense dislike for eggs and cheese. Any thought of getting out of this disappeared when Hinata's expression slowly lit up with innocent expectations as she looked at her father.

Hiashi almost sighed in defeat as he gently clapped his hands together and said "Itadakimasu" to officially begin the dinner. The two girls and Naruto immediately started to dig in and Hiashi was stalling for time as he slowly picked the knife and fork up. Naruto was somehow keeping an eye on Hiashi's face for his expressions. Hiashi caught this and realization came to him as he frowned slightly at the boy who gave a barely visible grin.

'_You little bastard…you took your time getting back at me for the incident with Hinata's first bento.' _ Hiashi had to admit he wasn't expecting this and almost allowed a smirk at the boy's deviousness. He was caught in this with Hinata's expectant eyes boring into him for his approval and Naruto ready to cut any escape route off with his timely 'innocent' comments. _'I'll have to graciously accept defeat,' _Hiashi determined as he slowly started to take his bites, making sure to nod his approval to Hinata. He was able to feel himself turn green underneath his stony demeanor and barely held his gag reflex back. It was a long and torturous fifteen minutes, made worse by Naruto's hidden smirk that only Hiashi saw.

When it was done, Hiashi sat very still…afraid to move lest he may do something unsightly in front of his daughters. It will not do to have them see their father in a less than stellar light. Hinata and Hanabi were starting to get concerned about their father's nonresponse to anything when Naruto decided to spare his host any further discomfort.

"Oi, how about we play a couple games in one of your rooms?" he suggested. Hiashi was relieved at the prankster's kindness as the girls nodded and the kids all got up to head into another room. As soon as they left, Hiashi quickly stood up and briskly walked to the nearest bathroom, almost knocking over a hallway table on the way.

**Later Outside the Compound**

'_That was hilarious watching Hiashi as he sat through the entire dinner trying to keep his composure. I almost lost it when his skin took on a slightly green hue,' _Naruto giggled as he walked down the usual path toward his apartment.

'**I like pranks as much as you do and that was good planning, but please do be careful not to piss the clan head off too much, boy,' **Kurama said with a slightly exasperated smirk.

'_I know, sensei. No worries there,' _Naruto said dismissively.

'**Putting that aside….please come into the mindscape tonight. After we finish practicing the katas, it's time we discuss the kenjutsu style you want to learn. You'll practice that along with your taijutsu. Eventually we'll have to ask the old fart for some practice weapons, depending on what you want to learn,' **Kurama supposed as Naruto nodded in response to everything. He was pretty excited about getting to start on mastering a weapon style.

Naruto grinned wide as he continued walking into the darkness of night as he imagined himself with different random weapons. He wondered which one would be the best for him.

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**And we end with Naruto about to learn the dual sabers style, which won the poll I put up last weekend. I haven't been able to think up a cool name for the style yet. I'm pretty sure Slashing Fox for taijutsu isn't that awesome either.**

**(Edit: I changed Slashing Fox to Raging Fox since that seems a bit more appropriate for what I have in mind for this style) **

**Next chapter, we'll quickly cover Naruto finding and starting to learn the style before we'll quickly go through some plot points over the four years Naruto will be in the academy. Hope you enjoyed this rather slow beginning to this mini-arc. **

**Please review and thanks!**


	7. Training Montage Pt 2

**I'll start out by saying I liked the name Slashing Fox less and less each time I saw that name, so I decided to do a change and I already made the changes in chapter 6. Thanks to a suggestion from Lord Farsight , I'm changing the taijutsu style from Slashing Fox to…Raging Fox. Not much of a change, but it is a more appropriate name for this style. **

**In addition, I came across a nice suggestion for the Kenjutsu style's name. Credit goes to Dragon Man 180 for providing the name of…Thrashing Tails. I like the name and it keeps well with the theme of Naruto embracing his fox sensei's teachings.**

**To be honest, I planned to release this chapter last week but I deleted it. I hated the way it read so I wanted to start over from scratch. Not much of that chapter remained in this one. So that's the reason for the delay…to make sure you at least read a decent quality chapter. :-)**

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**WARNING: This story will contain mature language, sexual themes, and graphic depictions of violence and gore.**

**DISCLAIMER: I do not own Naruto or any of its characters.**

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**Chapter 7: Training Montage Pt. 2**

**Inside Naruto's Mindscape**

Naruto ran as fast he was able to on the ground in the large and dense forest, doing something akin to parkour –as Kurama called it from her years of memories- across massive roots and fallen trunks in his path. He wasn't running from any danger…he was training. His sensitive hearing picked up some faint pattering of feet and hands on the ground behind him to the right. He spared a glance behind him to see two plain-looking 'boys' his age and size running on all four like foxes before one of them broke off and jumped across to behind Naruto's left. He grunted in frustration at allowing himself to be flanked.

With a split-second decision, he suddenly stopped dead in his track in the middle of a small clearing and prepared himself for any attack. The two 'boys' were momentarily surprised enough that they nearly overshot Naruto before they recovered and turned on the dime toward Naruto from both sides. One raised a knife hand with sharpened fingernails aimed at the boy's neck while the other went for the blonde's legs with a sliding leg sweep.

The boy smirked for an instant before he hopped and twisted his body into spinning horizontally in mid-air between the stabbing knife hand and the leg sweep, which both missed barely. As he spun, Naruto quickly whipped an arm out downward with all his might, connecting with the stabbing apparition's temple to hammer it to the ground hard. The huge force snapped its neck. Meanwhile, he thrusted a leg out to the sweeping apparition, his foot almost punching a hole through its face as it was kicked back. It crashed against a tree trunk hard enough to crack the bark around it. Before it could get up, its neck was brutally crushed against the tree by a lunging elbow from Naruto. Blood and spittle spewed from its mouth as it slumped down again and stayed still. Naruto let out a small sigh of relief.

"Give me a break, sensei. I've been at this for four hours with these two," Naruto grumbled out loud to no one in particular.

"**This will be the last bout. I'm increasing the difficulty too. Do well, boy," **Kurama's disembodied voice rolled through the forest like thunder.

The two apparitions that Kurama set upon him remained still for a moment before they twitched and started to rise from their positions, their previous wounds gone. Naruto cursed before he regained his bearings and ran on all fours as fast as he could outside the forest, into the plain. He caught a glimpse of the giant red fox Kurama in the distance, lying lazily on her side with her head propped up by an arm. Her eyes were slowly following the boy's movement. The boy heard rustling of the tall grass behind him. He knew the two apparitions were chasing him down. He suddenly tumbled forward into a series of cartwheels and backward somersaults before he finished by landing on all fours facing the opposite direction he was running. His body was coiled and ready to jump as his eyes were directly looking into the apparitions' soulless eyes as they stopped at the boy's display, wary of what he may have been planning. Naruto didn't want to give them any time to plan anything so he quickly jumped forward on all fours toward the 'boys'.

He let out a yell as he did a huge horizontal kick with his right leg, which forced the two 'boys' to split up. Naruto smirked as his plan to divide and conquer started off wonderfully. As he landed, he bounced off into a somersault the next instant, toward one of the two apparitions as it quickly prepared for any attack. Upon landing in front of his target, the boy made several stabbing jabs with both knife hands at the apparition's head, narrowly missing them all. He then flipped forward to attempt a powerful downward slash with his left leg whipping out. The apparition sidestepped the powerful attack in time as it struck out with a stabbing thrust toward the blonde's neck. The boy was ready for that as he hopped to his right, twisting his body horizontally upside down underneath its stab and caught its wrist as he continued his movement to the apparition's side. He landed with the apparition's arm now firmly locked up in his grip. The blonde let out a grunt as he pulled with all his might, breaking its arm as he swung the apparition around to throw it quite the distance. It landed roughly and rolled to a stop, completely still.

The boy didn't have time to admire his handiwork as the last apparition suddenly stabbed at his head with its arm from behind. He only moved his head sideway a little for the stab to miss. Naruto didn't waste the chance as he caught the arm from behind and quickly flipped the apparition overhead. It recovered in mid-air before landing and hopped on all fours toward Naruto. It zigzagged in an irregular pattern toward the wary boy, before it seemed to make an attack from Naruto's left. He was a little surprised when it feinted again and actually made an attempt to do a roundhouse kick from his right this time, but he was ready as he ducked the kick and simply countered by grabbing its face with one hand. With a loud grunt of might, he slammed its head onto the ground hard, driving it deep enough to almost submerge the head completely. The apparition laid still, its face showing mild surprise but no pain or any other emotion that would have indicated it was defeated. It creeped Naruto out and made his victory feel somewhat subdued.

"**Good job, Naruto. That's enough for now. Come over here and we will figure out a kenjutsu style for you," **Kurama called out from her lazy posture. The boy sighed tiredly and walked off as the two apparitions he defeated vanished into thin air.

"**Sit down and rest from your training. I'm going to show you my memories of the styles I have seen while observing the world for thousands of years. It may take hours, even days, but there is no need to rush. Keep in mind that you must be sure that the style would fit you, ok? Just pick out the styles you like and we'll put them aside until later and we will discuss them in depth before deciding on which one to start with," **Kurama spoke as Naruto sat down cross-legged and made himself comfortable. He gave an understanding nod. Kurama smirked as she snapped her fingers. A holographic projection appeared in mid-air in front of the boy. He could see a swordsman showing off some techniques with his katana. It looked pretty plain and basic. He gave a shrug, indicating his non-interest in this one. Kurama snapped her fingers again to change styles in the display. This would repeat for hours afterward until they had to stop to allow Naruto to physically and mentally recover for the rest of that night in a deep sleep.

**Five Days Later**

Thanks to the speeding up of time in his mindscape relative to the real world, he would be able to train an extra eight hours with just two hours of sleep. However, he still need to actually sleep and rest his mind beyond that for the rest of the night, otherwise he would be too sluggish for the next day. Since they started looking for the perfect kenjutsu style, the cycle of a full day of physical training and then four hours of mindscape training at night followed by the remaining four hours used for skimming through Kurama's memories continued until now.

"You seem to be running out of styles to show me, sensei. I can't believe how much you saw," Naruto remarked as he continued to stare at the styles cycling on the projection. He was sitting comfortably on the grass as Kurama kept her lazy posture from five days earlier, looking bored.

"**You can be so picky. Out of thousands you picked out just four, and I'm still not quite sure they're a good match for you," **Kurama grumbled as she snapped her fingers once more, switching to another style.

"I can't believe some of these styles…like that green-haired swordsman using three swords or that moody sissy-looking guy with the 'gunblade' as you called it," Naruto pointed out as he continued to look at the projection. The giant fox just shrugged lazily as she snapped her fingers again. The next style caught Naruto's attention.

"Wait….stop. Please show me more of this, sensei," Naruto requested, as he seemed to be fascinated with the tall and muscular man with an eye patch and a very impressive moustache displayed on the projection. The man was cutting through his enemies brutally and effortlessly with two thin swords. Kurama smirked as she had a feeling the boy would be interested in this, hence why she put off showing this style until near the end after he had seen nearly everything else. She snapped her fingers and the projection disappeared to be replaced by an apparition identical to the man previously in the display. Ten more apparitions then surrounded him with different weapons and they attacked him all at once. Naruto had to stare in awe as the man effortlessly evaded, sliced, and stabbed all ten apparitions in less than a minute. The man then straightened up, his swords hanging somewhat limply, but still ready, at his side and he looked at the boy with pure intimidation. It felt like he could slice the boy into little pieces with just a flick of one of his wrists and the boy had to hold back a gulp. The man then started demonstrating some stances and moves for Naruto to watch.

"**I can tell you like this style and I'm honestly not surprised. It is a very aggressive and fluid style. Like Raging Fox, this style does not have any decent defense since the sabers cannot stand up to repeated heavy strikes. It will require quick reflexes to parry, avoid, or counter any strike aimed at you. With enough practice, you should be able to effortlessly deflect any projectile, and you have three ways of using these sabers; you can slice through most things, stab with precision at a weak point, or throw them as projectiles to catch enemies by surprise," **Kurama explained.

"Seems like a style that would cause a lot of bloodshed."

"**You would be able to kill anything that moves with this, but you also have a choice to disable anyone with a careful slice at a tendon or a stab through one of the joints. It can get bloody but it will be as efficient as you want." **

Kurama watched the boy concentrate as if he was deep in his thoughts as he continued to watch the demonstrating apparition for a few long minutes.

"Well, this is the only style so far I actually like and I feel some sort of connection with this. I honestly don't think it's worth the time discussing the four other styles I picked out earlier and I might as well get started on learning this style. The swords…you called them sabers?"

"**They are rather unique in the Elemental Nations. Unlike the basic ninjato or katana, a saber is straight, usually longer, thinner, and somewhat fragile. However the blade can cut on either side and it is light, which makes it easy to slice through most things if you use enough strength. It has an effective guard on the handle, protecting your fingers and you can also use it as an improvised brass knuckle for enemies up close. Due to the weapon's rarity, you may have to get them made or hope the old fart know where they could be found. Make sure they are battle-ready when you do find some as there may be ceremonial ones and they're utter crap." **

Naruto let out a sigh. "I wonder why I ended up going for a weapon in which its rarity may put me at a disadvantage in this era and on this continent." Kurama gave a shrug.

"**Because it would be boring otherwise, I guess. Don't worry, boy. There WILL be a place or two that carry at least decent sabers. You just have to find them."**

"Alright. I just hope these long swords won't come back to bite me in the ass if I get stuck fighting in any narrow corridor."

"**You'll still have your kunais for that. Even with that, while this style will focus primarily on the sabers, it will also allow you to quickly disarm your enemies and make use of their weapons to suit any environment that may prove to be disadvantageous with the sabers." **

"Seems like the pros somewhat outweigh the cons on this one. I'm done looking. I like this style and I'll learn it to the best of my ability."

Kurama allowed a toothy grin as the demonstrating apparition vanished.

**"****Very well, Naruto. This style will cause a lot of bloodbaths. I can see my bloodlust being satiated in the future," **she said with a somewhat sinister tone. Naruto raised an eyebrow.

"Sometimes I forget you're a bloodthirsty demon, sensei," Naruto sighed with a smirk before turning serious. "I'm not going to commit murder for the sake of it. I will steel myself for killing if it's to protect my people, but I will give them a chance to back off if the situation allows for it."

Kurama let out a lazy shrug.

"**That's fine, boy. I don't care for my container turning into a mindless killing machine, anyway. Just remember one thing." **Naruto looked up at the giant fox. **"Your father killed over five hundred Iwa nins in several minutes in the Third Great War for the sake of protecting Konoha, which cheered this 'esteemed achievement'. On the other hand, people in Iwa bitterly revile your father to this day for being a 'monster', murdering five hundred of their friends, parents, and spouses. It is all about perspectives. Keep that in mind when you face your enemies."**

Naruto's eyes widened. He hadn't thought much about the view from Iwa's side. Even though Iwagakure started the Third Great War, it was hard to justify that massacre. He knew from Kurama's stories that his father did not even show mercy to fleeing nins. Every enemy within view died, no matter what they did. Naruto allowed a small shudder as he wondered if he would have to do something similar to that in the future for the sake of 'protecting his precious people'.

"**Now that we're done with the search, we'll get started on learning how to properly maintain swords and some basic exercises to strengthen your arms and hand grips while holding the swords. That's before we move on to beginning katas for this style. Meanwhile, we will see if we can't at least get practice swords from the old fart or elsewhere. By the time you graduate you need to buy your own set of sabers that you're comfortable with. That's a long way off, but they will be expensive because of their rarity. Better to see if you can put aside some money each month from your monthly allowances for that starting now." **

Naruto let out a groan. Even with the stores forced to sell anything to him at regular prices, he wouldn't have much left over for savings. Would he even be able to buy anything decent?

"**With that done…let's go ahead and get you rested up. We'll get started on your weapon training tomorrow. Last thing...I wonder what we should call this style? The name was never given by this master," **Kurama put a finger up to her muzzle in thought, as she seemed to absent-mindedly swing some of her tails around behind her. Naruto watched the tails flicker around while he was thinking. He knew his sensei's tails were extremely deadly. They could destroy mountains, uproot entire sections of forests, or generate tsunamis. She could also practically slash anything into pieces with them… more like the style he was shown a few minutes ago. He raised his eyebrows as an idea struck him.

"How about 'Thrashing Tails', sensei? It keeps in theme with the Raging Fox and everything else you're teaching me!" the blonde exclaimed excitedly. Kurama widened her eyes in realization before grinning toothily.

"**That's a good name. I don't think I would be able to come up with anything better. Thrashing Tails it is then, boy." **

**One Month Later at Naruto's Apartment**

Naruto was feeling despondent as he watched the sunlight start to fade from his bedroom's window in the waning hours of this day. He was lying on his bed that he hadn't left all day since he woke up, even with his stomach rumbling for food. He would be happy 364 days out of the year if he could help it, but not on this one day… on October tenth, the day the Kyuubi attacked eight years ago, and also his birthday. It was also the day the village threw a festival for the Kyuubi's 'death', and the hatred rose exponentially for the blonde Jinchuriki for one night as the villagers bitterly remembered how much were lost on that fateful day. He couldn't go out without causing riots so he decided to lock himself inside on this day every year.

Kurama gave him the day off from training because she knew his mind wouldn't be in the right frame for anything. She felt somewhat responsible for him hating this day but there was nothing she could say to improve her container's mood.

Naruto was going to be content with wasting away for the rest of the night until he jolted into a sitting position upon hearing knocking at the front door. Timid and polite, he knew that knocking to be done only by one person. He let out a sigh, as he couldn't pretend to not be home since it'd be impossible to hide from that person. He stood up from his bed, wearing just a t-shirt and shorts, and walked to the door to slowly open it. It revealed Hinata standing with three other people he wasn't expecting.

"Yo, Naruto! Happy birthday!" Ino exclaimed as she jumped on the surprised blonde for a hug, causing them to stumble to the floor.

"Troublesome…don't hurt our birthday boy, Ino. I need him for our celebratory shoji match," Shikamaru warned with a smirk.

"Hurry up and let us in so we can get started on the birthday cake Hinata baked for you," Choji said as he munched on his bag of chips.

"Ano…sorry for coming by unannounced, but we wanted to celebrate your birthday," Hinata said with a bright smile as she held up a box, presumably holding the cake she baked. Naruto was stunned. He couldn't be upset with this intrusion on his self-imposed private day to wallow in self-pity. In fact, he felt somehow happy with this sudden development. It was the first time anyone wanted to celebrate his birthday other than his surrogate grandfather. He allowed a true smile as he got up to his feet.

"Thanks, everyone! C'mon in!"

**Four Months Later at the Academy**

"So we're finally starting on the first step to becoming shinobi!" Naruto announced out loud as he stood in front of the Academy building. Hinata stood next to him in her dark blue baggy pants, a black sleeveless spandex top covered by her pink overcoat that was zipped up and went down to her knees. Her hair was showing signs of growing out beyond her usual short hairstyle, with her indigo hair barely covering the back of her neck.

"Yes!" Hinata asserted with a cute determined expression while adorably clenching her fists. She was happy to be able to be around Naruto all day nearly every day in the class. But…there was something bugging her.

"Ano…but…Naruto-kun, is there a reason you're wearing _that_?" Hinata pointed out to Naruto's odd outfit. It looked like a full workman's jumpsuit two sizes too large for him, with very durable fabric and lots of useful pockets. Hinata did not have a problem with that. She was more perturbed by the color. Blindingly bright neon kill-me-now orange from top to bottom threatened to burn out her precious Byakugan eyes if she was too close. Naruto smiled sheepishly.

"Oh this? Don't worry, Hinata-chan. I wouldn't be caught dead in this if I had a choice. I was shopping for an outfit and my sensei and I came across this in the bargains bin. I joked that I'd improve my stealth if I wore this doing pranks and got away scot-free. She got that idea and made me wear this until I graduate," Naruto grumbled.

"Oh thank Ka- I-I mean… I suppose that's a good challenge," Hinata tried to hide her relief that her growing love interest did not suddenly have a horrible sense of fashion. Now she just had to put up with this for four years and hopefully she would be rewarded with seeing him in an outfit that would match his good looks. She blushed lightly at the thoughts of what he could look like in four years. She wondered about herself and one thing she was sure about is that she'd get a small chest like most women in her clan. No way she was wrong about that.

"It's kinda embarrassing but I'll live with it. It's durable and it's big so I probably won't grow into it for a good while. It'll be fun telling Jiji-san I avoided squads of ANBUs and Jonins wearing this," Naruto said with a foxy grin that would make his sensei proud. Hinata giggled at the thought. She looked forward to the day that actually happened since that would make her and Hanabi laugh. The young couple finished their joking and walked inside the building.

Arriving at their classroom, they saw it was starting to fill up. They immediately picked two free seats in the fourth row. They saw Choji and Shikamaru sitting all the way back in the rear corner, farthest away from everyone else. Naruto assumed with a smirk that it was so Shikamaru could get sleep while being disturbed the least. They saw Ino standing at the front of the room, as if she seemed to be waiting for something. She noticed Naruto and Hinata and waved to them before she suddenly showed an affronted frown. Forgetting her post, she stomped up next to where Naruto was sitting.

"What the hell is that, Naruto? !" the platinum blonde bellowed with disgust, pointing rudely at Naruto's questionable choice in wardrobe. Everyone that was present in the room looked at the orange-clad boy. Shikamaru could be heard saying "Troublesome loud-mouthed blonde…"

"Hehe…It's a dare. I'm wearing this till I graduate," Naruto timidly said as he struck his sheepish gesture while some people in the classroom sniggered.

"Why? ! You're pretty cute and you could get a lot of girls before you graduate if you dress cool," Ino tried, slamming her hands on Naruto's desk as she leaned in. Hinata perked up at that and showed a flash of jealously in her eyes at the notion of girls going after him. Ino did not miss this and smirked slightly.

"Why would I care about that? I'm here to train to be a shinobi. Hell, you know I've already started on that a year before I even set foot in this building," Naruto retorted with a serious expression, looking offended at the notion he was interested in anything other than shinobi training in this sacred building. Hinata had to hide her victorious smile. Not only would that horrid outfit scare away image-conscious girls, he's not going to be easily swayed into looking for any girl's attention. He would be left all to only her when the time for romance came.

"Well, the way you said that is pretty cool. Maybe that damn outfit won't repel girls so much if you're still going to be cool about anything else," Ino said with a smirk, enjoying the slightly panicked look in Hinata's eyes as both girls saw several girls in the classroom blush at Naruto's serious but very handsome expression, despite his awful orange outfit.

Before Naruto could reply, the entire room went silent. Ino perked up and turned away from her fellow blonde to see what was going on. All three friends found the source at the classroom's door. A raven-haired boy with onyx-black eyes stood there, his eyes carefully surveying the entire room. He displayed a disinterested and arrogant expression, as if he couldn't be bothered with anything that wasn't relevant to him. He was wearing a short-sleeved and high-collared black zip-up shirt with white shorts. His hair was styled to look like a duck's butt. If one were to look at the back of his shirt, it would display his clan's symbol, denoting that he was an Uchiha.

"Is….that Uchiha Sasuke?" One girl said in a trembling voice. Ino let out a squeal as she and many other girls scrambled over to near Sasuke and asked him many questions. Naruto saw one of Sasuke's eyes twitch at the smothering attention and smirked. He looked over to his left to see Hinata sitting there, looking on with disinterest.

"Not gonna go for duck-butt like everyone else?" Naruto whispered near Hinata's ear, which nearly made her jump. After taking a second to think over what he said to her, she turned to him with a look of annoyance. Naruto was surprised to see that since it was rare for Hinata to get cross with him.

Hinata was a little angry with Naruto. She already matured quickly under the harsh environment within her clan. So much that she had already developed a more advanced view on many subjects, including romance. While they were still too young to worry about romance seriously, he was going to be her future love interest when they grew older. She understood that much about herself. For her love interest to have suggested that she went after someone else, even if it was a joke, upset her greatly.

"I have absolutely no interest in the Uchiha," Hinata replied with such cold indifference it gave him a chill, as if she perfected the Hyuuga composure.

_Huh? I pissed her off?_

_**That sent a shiver down my spine. **_

"Sorry, Hinata-chan. I was just teasing you."

Hinata sighed and looked away outside the window as the rest of the girls in the classroom continued to crowd around Sasuke while he tried to push his way through to his seat. Naruto silently cursed his stupidity and thought about what to say to his friend before a loud screech filled the classroom.

"Ino-pig! Get away from Sasuke-kun! You're bothering him!"

"ARGH!" A loud pained yell distracted the entire classroom from whatever they were doing to look toward the source. Naruto was tightly pressing his hands up to his ears while Hinata was fussing over him, concerned for his pain.

"What was that all about?" a pink-haired girl near Sasuke, who was also covering his ears, screeched at the interruption.

"For fuck's sake! Be quiet, you pink banshee!" Naruto cried as he slammed his forehead onto the desk, followed by a yelp from Hinata as she hovered over him.

"What the hell? ! I can't be that loud!" the banshee kept the volume up as she looked around the classroom and saw several people covering their ears. She blushed a little before Ino's hand slapped against her mouth.

"Sakura-chan, shut up! You're hurting Naruto with his sensitive hearing!" Ino whispered harshly to her friend/rival. That finally seemed to shut Sakura up for the moment to the relief of everyone in the room, Naruto especially. Recovering, Naruto scowled menacingly at Sakura who recoiled slightly under his icy gaze.

"Ano…are you ok, Naruto-kun?" Hinata inquired of the blonde, her annoyance completely forgotten.

"I'll barely live," Naruto grumbled as his mood took a slight hit from his failed joke and the banshee. They remained silent as more people filtered into the classroom. A young female Chunin stepped into the room and the entire room went silent.

The Chunin-sensei greeted and welcomed everyone with a long speech on this being the first step to becoming a shinobi of Konohagakure. As this was going on, Naruto gazed silently at Sasuke sitting in the next row down by the far wall.

_He seems a little arrogant._

_**Like I said in the past, he seems focused on only one goal, which I assume to be avenging the loss of his clan, and nothing else. You see all those people throwing themselves at his feet with hope of becoming his 'friends' yet he doesn't care about that. I would bet he got the council backing his every move, yet he's just using them so he can get stronger any way possible until they run of options and he'd betray them to look for more options. **_

The blonde scowled.

_So he gets advanced training while I have to resort to a demon fox for a sensei just so I can keep up with everyone here. _

_**I don't remember you complaining about our arrangement when we started this. Besides…what makes you think you're equal to or weaker than anyone in this room? **_

Naruto raised an eyebrow.

_**Anyway, you should keep your true talents hidden. Don't use anything you've learned already until the lessons covering them come up. You're also forbidden from using Raging Fox in any taijutsu spar on the school grounds. It will hurt the students too much, and you'll garner too much attention with that. You will learn the academy style to fool them. In fact, you probably should think about keeping a low profile throughout the years. Stay middle of the ground in grades. **_

_I don't mind that. I don't need the attention that they're probably going to pile on that duck-butt to inflate his ego until it got too big to fit through the village's gates. Any particular reason why, though?_

_**Take a look at the instructor. **_

Naruto shifted his eyes to look directly at the speaking Chunin-sensei. He narrowed his eyes as he noticed the familiar expression of loathing and disgust on the sensei's face each time she looked up at the blonde Jinchuriki.

_They're going to find every reason that I'm the demon personified. I suppose being too smart or too advanced in skills would set them off and they'll try to sabotage me at every turn. _

_**Right. I honestly don't care if my container does not come out top in this pathetic academy. If it was fifty years ago when the standards for graduating were much higher, I probably would have cared a tiny bit. **_

Naruto smirked. _It's nice having a doting parent in my head._

_**I doubt a parent would have you risk falling down a deep ravine on a regular basis, plan to have you go into a forest full of vicious monsters for 'training', teach you techniques that has the power to change the landscape for miles around, or especially have you dress up in that orange abomination for the next four years. **_

_Love you too, foxy. _

Naruto nearly chuckled aloud upon hearing a snort from his sensei.

**One Month Later at the Academy**

"Okay! It's time for our first exam. Don't turn your test over until I have finished passing them out, ok?" the female Chunin-sensei ordered as she walked around handing out the papers. She shot a particularly nasty glare at Naruto as she handed him the paper. He gave a slight shrug. Stapling five pairs of her (rather racy) panties, which he snatched from her home, to the classroom's ceiling in full view of everyone a couple weeks ago probably did not endear him to the instructor. Hinata seemed rather put out for a few days as well.

'_Ano…you should only touch mi…I-I-I mean…you shouldn't touch anyone's underwear!' _

When the instructor finished, he turned the paper over. He narrowed his eyes immediately. He may have found the lectures boring, but he paid enough attention to know that this Chunin-sensei did not cover anything in this exam's questions. In addition, they were much harder than what a first year student should be studying. He still could answer all the questions easily though. He heard a growl from inside his head.

_**So they are going to try to sabotage my container anyway. Even if you answered them all correctly, they'd think you're me in human disguise. After all, there is no way dumb old Naruto could be that smart. **_

…_.I think I was just insulted in that statement... I guess she's still a little pissed about the panties incident. I'm sure this is a genjutsu. Why would she stupidly give me any evidence that I can take to Jiji-san to get her in trouble? _

…_**.There is no genjutsu. **_

Naruto's eyes bulged out.

…_.What the hell? Is she really that stupid?_

Naruto leveled a gaze with the Chunin-sensei at the front of the room and smirked evilly. She involuntarily shivered.

_Think I should pretend to have no clue and answer them wrong? You did want me to keep a low profile. _

_**No. I want you to keep a low profile, not be deemed dumb enough to not notice an obvious switcheroo. If you let this go by, they will keep doing this and it will be annoying. Make an example of her so other instructors won't try the same thing. **  
_

"Excuse me, sensei. I believe you gave me the wrong exam. These questions has never been covered in your lectures," Naruto sweetly said and everyone in the class perked their heads up, interested in the development. The Chunin-sensei looked offended.

"It's not my fault you did not pay attention to my lectures. Now complete the exam quietly or I will have you leave for disrupting the test."

Naruto allowed a cold smile to slowly form that chilled the instructor's body. She felt for an instant she blew her chance before she waved that doubt away.

"If you're so sure this is the correct exam, I'm taking this to the headmaster of this school, who happens to be Hokage-sama, and have him explain to me why I was given a much more difficult test than the rest of the class without any prior warning," Naruto declared with his icy cold eyes trained on the profusely sweating instructor.

Naruto merely stood up from the desk with the paper in hand and walked out of the classroom toward the Hokage's office. The entire room broke into murmurs. Hinata, Shikamaru, Ino, and Choji were glaring angrily at the Chunin-sensei. The instructor slumped down to her knees in defeat as she briefly thought that maybe she let her hatred for the Kyuubi consume her and she was going to pay dearly for it.

The next day, a new instructor came into the classroom. He flinched under Naruto's steely gaze as he remembered the Hokage's promise of pain if he did not do his job properly.

**Two Months Later at the Academy**

It was a beautiful day in May as all the first-year students mingled outside on the sparring grounds next to the Academy. They were enjoying their lunch break between learning the academy style and sparring with it after lunch ended. It would be the students' first time sparring with their partners.

"So what are you going to do, Naruto?" Shikamaru mumbled as he made a move on the improvised shogi board drawn in the dirt between him and Naruto. They were playing a quick shogi match before the instructor would come out and end the break. Hinata was sitting next to Naruto as she watched the match in fascination while Ino and Choji were making small talk behind the pineapple-haired boy.

"Huh? I'm fortifying my Mino Castle defense against your offensive," was Naruto's reply as he moved one of his pieces to block his opponent's offensive. Naruto had improved tremendously in his shogi playing. He actually won his first match against Shikamaru, to his tremendous dismay, a few months ago. Now he won one out of ten times while consistently challenging Shikamaru's planning capacity.

"Troublesome…I meant the spars. We know you're working on that style of yours. We've never actually seen it in action. Are you going to use it?" Shikamaru drawled with feigned disinterest as he made another sneaky move on the board to the blonde's chagrin. To be honest, he really wanted to see how strong Naruto truly was. He knew the blonde was well beyond everyone, even Sasuke, in this class with the way he carried himself lately. Nara Shikamaru may be a lazy ass and he'd find it troublesome to tell anyone otherwise, but he hated not having all the data on anything he's interested in.

"Sorry, Shika. I'd rather not," Naruto replied apologetically as he made a sneaky move of his own. Shikamaru's eye twitched before he went into a thinking pose.

"Ano…why not? I have seen you practice it and you are very far along with it. I am confident you can beat anyone here," Hinata interjected.

"Including you?" Naruto retorted cheekily. The Hyuuga flinched and blushed.

"Nah. I don't need the attention and it will seriously hurt anyone here if I go too far. Also….Sasuke-teme will be on my ass 24/7 to fight him if I show off too much. I'll just stick with the academy style and see how far I can get with that."

Hinata nodded, a little dejected that she won't get to see Naruto kick ass. She was brought out of her thoughts upon hearing Shikamaru's sharp exhalation as he came out of his 'thinking pose'.

"Dammit…troublesome. You win. I can't think of any move from this point that will get me out of trouble."

Naruto stuck his arm into the air in victory.

"Yata! My record is now 9 wins and 126 losses!"

Everyone but Shikamaru sweat dropped at their friend's delight over such a lopsided win-loss record.

"I doubt anyone would find that impressive," Ino said dully from behind Shikamaru.

"Well, imagine this. If it were against someone like…you, it would really suck so badly. I'd want to commit suicide for losing against someone like you so much," Naruto said despite Ino's growling indignation at his blatant insinuation about her intelligence.

"But…if it was against someone like Shikamaru, it's impressive. Tell me, did any one of you win even once against him?" Choji, Ino, and Hinata flinched and fell to their fours with rainclouds hanging over their heads.

"Troublesome…do you have to be so brutal about that?" Shikamaru grumbled as he let out a yawn. Naruto just shot him a foxy smirk.

"OK! Lunch break's over! Time for the sparring matches!" the Chunin-sensei yelled as he stepped out of the building toward a large circle of bricks buried into the ground.

Everyone gathered around the circle. After that, two random students went up against each other for one three-minute round each pair. It went on for a while with Hinata, Choji, Sasuke, Ino, and Shikamaru winning their matches rather easily. Finally it was Naruto's turn up against an Inuzuka boy wearing a simple shirt and shorts with the red Inuzuka clan fangs on his cheeks. He was just introduced to his companion dog, Akamaru, and they haven't trained together enough to be able to fight alongside each other effectively yet. Due to that, the tiny Akamaru stayed on the sideline.

"Yeah! Looks like I got an easy one!" Inuzuka Kiba exclaimed loudly as he stepped up across from the waiting Naruto.

"Still as smelly as ever, dog breath," Naruto retorted as he pinched his nose. He really did smell bad. Kiba immediately growled at the insult.

The Chunin-sensei shouted "Start!" as Kiba leaped toward Naruto, his fangs exposed in a snarl. Naruto simply sidestepped Kiba's lunge and countered with a basic palm strike at the Inuzuka's exposed side. Kiba let a pained gasp escape from his lips as he blindly swung his hand back around, its sharpened fingernails aimed at Naruto's head. The blonde effortlessly grabbed the hand and pulled the Inuzuka backward across to flip him over and onto the ground with a loud thud. Kiba yelled painfully as he landed hard on his back. Akamaru jumped in between Kiba and Naruto as he barked and growled at his master's assailant. The Chunin-sensei decided to stop the spar at that point and unenthusiastically awarded Naruto the win. Kiba slowly got up glaring balefully at Naruto as the blonde quietly walked off, followed by his friends as they were done with the spars for the day as well.

The students who watched were impressed. Sasuke eyed Naruto suspiciously while Shikamaru raised an eyebrow as he walked alongside the smiling Naruto.

_That was a very sharp and precise use of the standard katas. It shows how much he trained on his actual style if he was able to use the standard style at an advanced level already._

Afterward, the spars stopped and the students broke up to get ready to leave for the day.

**Next Month in Hokage's Office, One Day Before Naruto**

**Leaves for his First Kyuubi's Chakra Training**

The Third Hokage, the most powerful shinobi in the village who's in command of the powerful shinobi force of the Fire Country, also known as the God of Shinobi, was rubbing his temples and sighing heavily as an enraged ANBU stood in front of the desk, ranting about Naruto's latest prank.

Naruto sat on the floor, tied up tightly next to the ranting ANBU. He was wearing a shit-eating grin.

"…He broke into the ANBU Headquarters' locker room and switched out some of our uniforms and masks! Considering the fact that the headquarters is actually supposed to be hidden, this is a serious breach of security! We have to do something about this damn brat!"

"Oi! That was supposed to be a secret? ! Every villager figured it out by simply watching where the ANBUs converge around a certain building! At least put a damn genjutsu up or something!" Naruto retorted loudly at the very animated ANBU.

Sarutobi sighed heavily again.

"What happened with the uniforms and masks, Naruto-kun? I do not see anything different," the Third tiredly said as he indicated the normal-looking ANBU next to the boy. He almost regretted his question as he watched Naruto's grin grow sinister. The three hidden ANBU guards in his office shifted uncomfortably.

"I only picked three to victimize….I mean…have fun with. You probably can guess who," Naruto replied ominously. It only took Sarutobi a second to understand his implications. He snapped his fingers.

No one appeared from the shadows in this room. Hiruzen raised an eyebrow.

"Now, I am willing to give all three of you one more chance as I will snap my fingers one more time. If any one of you does not appear at that instant, I will bust all of you back down to genin and doing only Tora missions for a year. Is that clear?"

Naruto snickered as the Third easily felt the fear radiating off his hidden ANBU guards. Sarutobi took a moment before snapping his fingers again. All three hidden guards appeared behind the tied up Naruto at the same time. The Third winced as he raised a hand to block the blindingly bright colors radiating off the ANBU's new uniforms.

The one on the left was wearing a bright neon yellow ANBU uniform with a generic white mask that had a cartoonish scribbling of a 'henohenomoheji' on it. The one in the center was all neon pink and his generic mask's scribbling showed a perverted expression; a lecherous sneer, peering eyes, and rosy cheeks. The last one on the right wore neon green. Her mask showed a scribbling of an 'Awesome Face'. It took the Hokage all he had to suppress his laughter at the ridiculous display in front of him. Naruto didn't have the same reservation as he laughed uproariously at the sight of the three ANBUs wearing nothing but eye-searing colors. Even the ANBU who caught the boy had to work to hold his laughter back.

"Our apologies, Hokage-sama. As you can see…i-it was d-difficult for us to come out here," the one in the center spoke quietly as he glared daggers at the laughing blonde.

"You weren't able to find any spare?" the Third inquired as he tried everything to keep his composure on the inside.

"There weren't anything else in the locker room we could use and we could not afford to miss our shift so we were forced to use what we had," the neon green female ANBU with long purple hair spoke up. The Third raised an eyebrow at Naruto for an explanation.

"No worries, Jiji-san. I hid the stuff I switched out inside the storage room next door to the locker room. They'll find everything there."

The ANBUs let out a sigh of relief.

"Very well. I'll take care of Naruto-kun. You may go back to work," Sarutobi said dismissively. The three neon-colored ANBUs prepared to leave the office to change, while the normal-looking ANBU already vanished into thin air.

"Where are you going? I did not say you could leave your posts. Remain like that for the rest of the day. In fact, don't even change until after you have gotten home from your shift," the Hokage ordered with a pleasant smile. The three ANBUs flinched in horror.

"That's cold, old man," the blonde accused. Sarutobi raised a finger to point at Naruto.

"If they could not detect you breaking into a building buzzing with the best trained nins stationed every twenty feet in that bright orange outfit then either they need to be trained some more or you deserve an award. Maybe they could learn from your example briefly, Naruto-kun," the Hokage smirked as he watched his guards glare and project their killing intent at the tied-up boy, who was growing nervous.

"Oi, there's no need to piss off people who can hide in shadows and stab things with pointy things! They're going to come for me in the middle of the night!"

The neon green ANBU's hand twitched slightly as if she was about to reach for her sword.

"I am sure they won't…especially after they hear what I have thought up for your punishment. I was thinking about having one of my former students join you on this training trip alongside Tenzo-san, who I have explained as having the unique ability to subdue any bijuu's chakra if it gets out of control. However I honestly do not think he would be needed until the next break and I could not find him in time anyway…so I will be replacing him with a certain someone. He's a taijutsu specialist who would be able to help you improve your taijutsu when you're taking breaks from bringing out the Kyuubi's chakra," the Hokage said innocently. The three ANBUs' demeanor changed completely at the mention of the taijutsu specialist and they were grinning evilly behind their masks. Naruto seemed to think nothing was wrong though.

"A taijutsu specialist, huh? I don't see how that would be punishment," Naruto cocked his head.

"You will find out, young boy, when you meet your two guardians tomorrow at the main gate," the Hokage replied with a pleasant smile.

Later that night, one Mitarashi Anko almost had to be admitted into the hospital after she hurt her stomach and facial muscles laughing so hard at her roommate's bright neon green uniform and mask.

**Next Morning at the Hokage's Office**

Sarutobi Hiruzen yawned loudly as he shook the tiredness out of his old body walking into the office to start his work for the day. Before sitting at the desk, he opened the window facing the main gate in the distance and sat down. He only had to wait a few minutes before a man's ear-splitting voice shook the quiet morning air.

"YOSH! YOUR FLAME OF YOUTH IS BURNING EVER SO BRIGHTLY IF YOU ARE TRAINING AT SUCH A YOUNG AGE! WE SHALL TRAIN TOGETHER AS HARD AS WE CAN FOR THE NEXT THREE MONTHS AND MAKE YOUR FLAME OF YOUTH BURN WHITE HOT!"

Followed by a child's horrified yell.

"ARGH! DON'T LET THE CATERPILLARS ON YOUR EYES NEAR ME! DAMN YOU, OLD MAN!"

Sarutobi leaned back into his chair and let a smile grow slowly on his face.

"Ah…music to my ear."

**Three Months Later**

Tenzo was standing in front of the Third Hokage's desk in the office giving his report.

"Naruto-san trained himself nearly into the ground over the past three months. After spending half of each day trying to control the Kyuubi's chakra, he spent the other half practicing what he learned from the Kyuubi overnight and getting into taijutsu spars with me and Gai-san. He never won, but we saw vast improvements compared to when Naruto left with us three months ago."

The Hokage nodded his head, indicating for Tenzo to continue.

"In the final spar against Gai-san before we left, we allowed Naruto-san to augment his Raging Fox style with the Kyuubi's power. I carefully monitored the battle so I could interfere with my sealing at any time if need be. The difference was incredible. It actually ended up with Gai-san getting several minor injuries before Naruto-san was knocked out. Gai-san still did not go all out, but for an eight-year-old boy to able to give an Elite Jonin like The Green Beast of Konoha a little trouble for thirty miutes is nothing short of amazing."

The Third raised an eyebrow.

"How much of the Kyuubi's power is he able to control?"

"He is able to go up to two tails of the Kyuubi's chakra in a red shroud that completely surrounds his body and it's shaped to look like a fox. In that mode, he was as fast as a Jonin if all he focused on was running, his strength increased exponentially, he recovers from most minor injuries almost instantly, and the shroud defends him against low-level jutsus. He is also able to mold the chakra shroud into forming more "claws" that can extend from his body to reach long-distance targets. All of this was able to go up to thirty minutes of usage in which he was completely stable with no risk of losing control. After that, the malevolent chakra will start to hurt his body, so we restricted him to only thirty minutes of the chakra's usage per day. From what I documented of Naruto-san's progress, he managed to control four levels of the demon fox's power."

"Didn't you say only two tails worth of chakra?"

"There is also a tailless mode in which we did not see the red chakra surrounding him, but he still released the Kyuubi's killing intent and gained a significant speed and strength boost over his normal attributes, not to mention at that level and beyond, he displayed more defined Kyuubi-like features like red eyes with silted pupils, fangs, larger and darker whiskers, and sharp claw-like fingernails. Below that level, he is able to channel a small bit of the chakra to his eyes for improved vision, especially at nighttime where he could see everything as if it was daytime, and he can also use the chakra to extend his fingernails into claws or retract them. The chakra used for these functions was completely undetectable so he is able to use his eyes or claws any time he wishes to without worrying anyone around him with the Kyuubi's presence."

The Third leaned back into his chair, wondering if he's letting Naruto go too far with the training too fast.

"Tenzo-san, was there any doubt … even a tiny amount of it… from either you or Gai-san that Naruto remained completely himself?"

Tenzo shook his head with a smile.

"After spending three months with him, I can say with hundred percent confidence he is still the Uzumaki Naruto you know. In fact, he's planning a pr-"

Tenzo was interrupted by the office's door banging loudly open to reveal a horror unlike anything the Third had seen in his long life.

Naruto walked into the room. That was normal enough itself but everything ended after that. He was sporting a horrid green one-piece spandex with an orange sash around his waist and orange leg warmers. His blond hair was cut and smoothed into a bowl-cut style like Maito Gai, and he even sported two very thick and fuzzy blond eyebrows above his blue eyes. To make it worse, he opened his mouth.

"YOSH! I HAVE RETURNED FROM THREE MONTHS OF MAKING MY FLAMES OF YOUTH BURN WHITE HOT! I HAVE NEVER FELT MORE YOUTHFUL THAN I AM RIGHT NOW!"

The Hokage sat stock still in his chair with a dumb expression on his face, as if he was trying his best to unsee what had been wrought before him. He did not see Tenzo slap his forehead.

"YOUR FLAMES OF YOUTH BURNS BRIGHTLY COMPARED TO MINE. I SHALL TRAIN MYSELF AS HARD AS I CAN UNTIL MY YOUTHFULLNESS CAN MATCH YOUR WHITE-HOT YOUTH!"

Maito Gai's voice boomed throughout the office as a tall black-haired man in the same green spandex with a Jonin vest worn over it and light green legwarmers ran into the room to stand next to Naruto. He also sported the same horrid bowl-cut and thick black eyebrows. Naruto turned to Gai.

"GAI-SENSEI! I SHALL MAKE MY YOUTHFULLNESS BURN EVEN MORE BRIGHTLY THEN. IF I CANNOT DO THAT, I WILL RUN TEN LAPS AROUND THE FIRE COUNTRY!"

"NARUTO-SAN! YOUR YOUTH WILL BURN EVEN MORE WITH THAT! IF I CANNOT SUCCEND IN MATCHING YOUR YOUTHFULNESS, I SHALL RUN TEN LAPS AROUND THE ENTIRE ELEMENTAL NATIONS!"

The entire office went deathly silent for a moment until a thump was heard. Everyone looked toward the desk to see the Third laying his forehead on it whispering something no one could make out.

'_It's my fault…I was too harsh on Naruto-kun before he left…and now he's turned into a mini-Gai! What horrors have I wrought! ? I'm so sorry, Minato-kun…I shall redeem myself by ending their lives then commit seppuku.' _

An uproarious laughter erupted throughout the office, causing the Hokage to raise his head. He saw Gai and Naruto on their backs laughing.

"We sure got you, old man!" Gai exclaimed before laughing some more with the Naruto/Gai hybrid.

Sarutobi's eye twitched.

"What is going on? Is this a prank and why have you joined in, Gai-san?"

"I'm not Gai-sensei," the Gai imposter said as he got up before puffing into some smoke. After a second, the smoke cleared away to reveal a regular looking Naruto in his orange jumpsuit.

"I forgot to mention, Naruto-san here has learned **Kage Bunshin no Jutsu **from the Kyuubi and he can use it in combination with **Henge **with frightening ease," Tenzo suddenly interjected before there was any further confusion. As if on cue, the Gai/Naruto hybrid released its **Henge **to reveal another normal-looking Naruto. A cold chill went deep into the very essence of the Third's being as he realized the implications of multiple solid copies of Naruto…each with Naruto's intelligence and mischievousness.

Terrified of that notion, Sarutobi quickly pushed it aside, and made a mental note to hurry up and pick his replacement as soon as possible. Including the three ANBUs guards hidden inside the office, the entire ANBU force, even the ones out of the village on missions, got an ice-cold chill down their spines as they had the feeling their greatest nemesis ever suddenly got much more powerful.

"Which one of you is the real Naruto-kun?" the Hokage erratically asked as he wiped away the cold sweat on his forehead.

The one that was Gai raised his hand to show its fingernails sharpening into claws. He then stabbed them lightly into the Naruto that was the hybrid to pop it.

"I'm back, Jiji-san!" the blonde exclaimed with a foxy grin. The Hokage returned the grin with an uncertain smile.

"I am glad to see you are doing well. Tenzo-san here has told me how much of a menac- I mean…how much of a good shinobi you will grow into."

"Hehe…I can't believe how much stronger I got. It's thanks to Super Fuzzy-Eyebrows and Tenzo-san here that I came this far. I actually almost became a mini-Gai a few times though."

Everyone in the office, including the hidden ANBUs, shuddered.

"It's like he had some way of brainwashing people. I hope no one else would fall for Gai-sensei's…. enthusiasm."

Everyone shuddered again.

"*Ahem* That won't happen…hopefully. So you are able to use the **Kage Bunshin.**.. how many copies could you create, Naruto-kun?" the Hokage inquired.

"Hm…I was able to go up to two hundred but they're pathetically weak with so little chakra and they won't last long. I can make 25 clones that last all day and they have about the same strength as me. Though they still pop after one hit."

"Very good. I daresay you are already ready to graduate with what you have learned. You're welcome to test out early if you'd like," the Hokage was not surprised to see his surrogate grandson shake his head no without any hesitation.

"No thanks, Jiji-san. Fox-sensei says I'm still not ready and I'd rather enjoy my time with my friends before we all have to do missions and stuff. For the next year, I'm just going to focus on learning more about elemental jutsus and figure out my nature affinities. Fox-sensei says I will have a natural affinity for fire due to her chakra, but she believes there will be one or two more."

The Hokage nodded his head.

"I am glad you made it back here safely. I will let you go home, as I'm sure you'd like to rest before the Academy starts again in two days. Before I let you go though, I would like to inquire of you and Tenzo-san on the whereabouts of Gai-san. He usually is the first one here upon returning from any mission, expressing his…. enthusiasm."

Tenzo let out an exasperated sigh. Naruto struck his usual sheepish pose.

"That would be my fault, Jiji-san."

Sarutobi raised an eyebrow.

"I got tired of his…. youthfulness on the return trip so I challenged him to keep quiet the rest of the way or he'd run five laps around the Fire Country. Needless to say…he failed miserably. Before we could tell him it was a joke, he took off with inhuman speed and we never found him. He's probably scaring the Kumo patrols shitless running along the Lighting's border at this moment."

The God of Shinobi thumped his forehead on the desk while the hidden ANBUs could not help but chuckle at the comedy they were watching.

**On the Streets Heading Toward the Hyuuga Compound**

_Man…I really missed the glares of hatred from these lovely villagers. _Naruto thought sarcastically as he walked through the village surrounded by glaring people. He heard whispers of "The demon's back from wherever he disappeared to" and "I was hoping he'd stay away". Kurama spoke up.

_**Oh well. Nothing we can do about that. Listen, Naruto. I never had a chance to say this but I want you to know I am proud and astonished at how fast you have learned to control my chakra. I never would have expected you to get up to two tails in just three months. Not to mention you are doing well with your taijutsu and kenjutsu trainings. **_

_Thanks, sensei. It means a lot to me to hear you say that. _

_**Unfortunately, I am afraid we will hit a brick wall next break. You will obtain three tails with no problem. Fourth and beyond is when it is going to be tough. At the forth tail and above you will gain more of the powerful abilities I use, like the **_**Imari**_**. However, the chakra shroud will become so malevolent and dense that it will hurt your body right away and you will find it almost impossible to keep control of your senses. If you go on a rampage, almost no one will be able to stop you…not even that wood ghoul. **_

Naruto frowned at that.

_That sucks. I guess we'll have to make do with mastering the third tail mode to the best of our abilities and leave it at that until we figure out something in the future. _

_**I'm not saying we give up on that. There is something else I thought up of that we could attempt. Call it an experiment. If it succeeds, it will create a completely new direction in your ability to harness more of my chakra. **_

_And what if it fails? What would happen?_

_**Pain. Extreme and all-encompassing pain. So much pain that you'll wish you were dead. **_Kurama replied with no hesitation.

_Geez…no need to sugarcoat it. Tell me how bad it really will be. _Naruto retorted with sarcasm while Kurama snickered.

_**I never said it'd be easy. If what that old fart said about his student coming along to help you next year is true, it should help you in your progress. **_

_You know of him? _

_**Yes. His name is Jiraiya, one of the Legendary Sannin. **_

Naruto raised both his eyebrows.

_Seriously? ! I read about him in the history books. He's supposed to be very strong! _

_**That's not all. You're more related to him than you realize. **_

_Huh?_

_**He's also supposed to be your godfather. I heard your parents appoint him as one when I was sealed in your mother. **_

Naruto stopped all of a sudden in the middle of the street, surprising several villagers nearby. He stood there for a minute as he slowly took in the revelation as some of the villagers looked on with curiosity. He started walking again, with a cold frown and his fists clenched tightly at his sides as he continued on his way to the Hyuuga compound.

_When I meet him, I am going to kick him in the balls first thing. _

Kurama snickered at that possibility.

A few minutes later, his anger dissipated. Naruto decided it wasn't worth fuming over the latest revelation if Jiraiya wasn't going to be around to take his well-deserved punishment. He arrived at the Hyuuga compound's gate. The guards quickly allowed him inside, used to his frequent presence by now.

Naruto stepped into the compound and started for the main family's house. He wondered how Hinata, Hanabi, and Hiashi were doing after three months. He remembered that Hinata became distressed when he told her that he would be out of the village for three months. Even Hanabi, who had been growing more stoic like her father every day, got upset when she heard as well. They had all but ordered him to stop by the compound as soon as he returned from the trip. He smiled at the memory of Hanabi threatening him with bodily harm if he upset Hinata by not making a beeline for the compound from the Hokage's office when he returned. He knew the younger Hyuuga would be just as upset herself, if more.

He frowned as he felt someone's cold fury directed at him. He shifted his eyes to the right to find the source. Hyuuga Neji stepped out of the shadows under a tree near the main house's entrance. Naruto stopped in his track, his hands still at his sides as he glared directly at Neji's cold white eyes. They saw each other several times in passing but they haven't directly faced each other since Neji's brutal attack on Naruto a year and half ago.

"Is there something you need, Neji-teme?" Naruto said coolly as he kept his icy gaze leveled with Neji's cold white eyes.

"You look much stronger compared to the weakling I faced last time, Uzumaki-sama. How it that possible?" Neji's tone was just as cold and calculating as his eyes.

"Training and hard work, that's all. I feel like I could kick your ass right now. Too bad Hiashi-sama banned us from dueling," Naruto said with a nonchalant shrug. Neji smirked.

"I am not concerned about you catching up to me. Fate has decided I am the stronger of us and I will defeat you when we do have our battle."

"I don't believe in all that fate crap and I'll prove that by taking in all your anger and returning it tenfold. Be ready because I am constantly getting stronger. Can you afford to rely on your fate bailing you out when you find out you did not work hard enough to back up your fate talk?"

Neji narrowed his eyes while Naruto smirked darkly as he broke off the conversation and continued his walk toward Hiashi's house. Neji clenched his fists and walked off toward his residence.

_I will do everything I can to prove him otherwise. I will make myself stronger and faster for I am fated to win. _

A moment later, his confrontation with Neji forgotten, Naruto stood at the front door to Hiashi's house. He knocked once before he heard some thumping and rumbling and it was getting louder. He sweat dropped for an instant before the front door flew open to launch a tiny Hyuuga girl into the blonde's stomach. Naruto could only expel air from his lungs involuntary as he caught the black-haired cannonball.

"Onii-chan! You're back! Did you come here straight from Hokage-sama's office like I told you to?" Hanabi excitedly yapped as she wrapped her arms around his waist for a hug. Naruto chuckled and patted her back.

"I did, Hanabi-chan. Looks like you're very happy I followed your orders," Naruto teased after catching his breath.

"T-That was for Nee-chan's sake! I could wait until tomorrow, but Nee-chan would be heartbroken if she heard you waited," Hanabi defended as she let go of Naruto's waist.

"Ano..I would've been fine, Hanabi-chan. He might have needed his rest upon returning from the trip, you know," Hinata admonished her little sister softly as she appeared at the doorway, but it was clear she was happy to see her friend as soon as possible too. Her attire hadn't changed much, but her hair had grown longer as it now reached to her shoulders. Naruto had to admit she was looking cuter the longer her hair grew.

"Uzumaki-san, it is good to see you again after so long. Please come in," Hiashi appeared behind Hinata and gave a bow. Naruto returned the bow as he and Hanabi went inside with the rest.

A few minutes later, they were seated at the dining table enjoying some tempura and stir-fried vegetables cooked by Hinata. The children were chatting about what they did over the past three months.

"…And I was able pull a fast one on Gai-sensei when he thought he hit me but it was really a shadow clone that I substituted with!" Naruto was recounting his stories, carefully leaving out any mention of Kurama and her chakra.

"Ano…what is a shadow clone?" Hinata spoke up and Hanabi looked just as curious. Hiashi raised an eyebrow at the notion of a child learning a Jonin-level kinjutsu. Naruto looked toward Hiashi as if to silently ask permission. Hiashi nodded.

"It's a jutsu I learned from my sensei. Not many can use this very well because of the high chakra requirement but I have plenty to spare," Naruto explained as he formed a cross shape with his hands and two fingers each. A puff of smoke appeared next to Naruto, surprising both Hinata and Hanabi. The smoke disappeared to reveal a perfect clone of Naruto waving at the girls. The girls looked shocked and could only dumbly wave back. Hiashi smirked a little.

"I-is that a solid copy?" Hinata squeaked as her Byakugan activated to check.

"That's right, Hinata-chan. I can do the same attacks as Boss if I was given enough chakra and think independently from him if I don't have an order to carry out," the clone spoke up.

"I also can learn whatever it learns when it dispels. Perfect for training, spying, reading, etc. The only thing that can't be transferred back to me is muscle training. I will have to do that myself. A major disadvantage is that the clone pops after one hit," the original explained as he demonstrated by lightly tapping the clone on its head to make it disappear in a puff of smoke.

"If I use a lot of chakra, the clone can last longer and be able to take a couple more hits before dispelling."

Hinata sat still as the implications of multiple Narutos running around went through her mind. Unlike the perturbed reactions from the Hokage and the ANBUs, it made her happy. So happy she promptly fainted and fell backward onto the floor from her kneeling position at the table.

"Hinata-chan/Nee-chan!" Naruto and Hanabi cried alarmingly as they moved around to hover over Hinata's still smiling and blushing face. Hiashi almost face palmed, as he seemed to have understood exactly what went through his daughter's mind.

_She's starting out so young, like my beloved Hitomi. Uzumaki-san, it seems I will fear for your innocence sooner rather than later. _

An hour later, our blonde hero was found sitting on the living room's sofa next to Hiashi reading a scroll in his chair. Naruto's eye was twitching with annoyance. Two reasons for his annoyance were found in an indigo-haired girl sleeping with her head on his lap, her arms tightly wrapped round his right thigh, and her younger black-haired sister resting her head against his left side, one of her arms tangled with his left arm. Both of them cuddled up tightly against him as if refusing to let him have a chance to slip out.

"What's with Hyuuga girls using me as their personal teddy bear, Hiashi-sama?" Naruto grumbled. Hiashi looked up from the scroll with a small smirk.

"Perhaps it is part of your charm, Uzumaki-san."

"Even your servant looked at me as if I'm her favorite stuffed animal."

Hiashi raised an eyebrow.

"Tomoe-san is forty-three years old."

"Exactly! Not just these two, but other Hyuuga females of all ages too! A while ago, I even saw one of the elders do a double take in my direction with that lovely-dovey look in her eyes!"

"That must have been my aunt. She is rather... odd. My apologies."

Naruto gave a slight shudder.

Hiashi shook his head slightly with an amused smirk. A comfortable silence followed, with the two girls' gentle breathing the only noise being made in the living room. Naruto's expression turned somewhat melancholy, as he seemed to be stuck on a subject in his mind.

"Hiashi-sama, are you really okay with your daughters being friends with me? The village pariah and the Jinchuriki?"

Hiashi raised his head.

"What brought that up, Uzumaki-san?"

"With your position in the shinobi force, it shouldn't be hard for you to learn what I was really doing the past three months. I was learning to control the Kyuubi's chakra."

Hiashi nodded his head in affirmation.

"So I am trying to control the wild and terrible chakra of the Kyuubi no Yoko, the bogeyman of this entire village's dreams for the past eight years. It could get dangerous for me and my friends around me one day…from within and/or from outside, if the villagers found out."

Hiashi put his scroll down as he leaned back into the chair deep in thought. After a long moment, he spoke up.

"I will admit I did think about possible situations between you and my daughters that would not end favorably for everyone involved. However, these are just mere speculations. I feel if one of these situations ever came to pass, we all would deal with whatever may happen at that time. Until then, I know for certain that Hinata and Hanabi are perfectly happy having you around and you are doing wonders for Hinata's confidence issues. I don't see any reason why I have to be premature and try to change anything between you and my daughters. You're even directing Neji-san's anger into improving himself constantly after what I just saw before dinner."

Naruto flinched before doing his sheepish gesture with his free hand.

"Hehe…you saw?"

"My eyes are not all-seeing for nothing," Hiashi retorted with a smirk before continuing.

"Uzumaki-san, my feeling is that you are doing a great service to this village by keeping the Kyuubi contained within you. That should have been good enough for you, but you're going above and beyond the call of duty by learning to be in control of the Kyuubi's chakra so you can grow stronger to protect people you consider precious, even with a small risk of anything going wrong."

Naruto sat there with a blank face as he looked into Hiashi's sincere eyes. After a moment, he allowed a gentle smile to grow on his face.

"Thanks, Hiashi-sama. It's the first time anyone in this village ever described my situation like that. I feel much better. I'll be careful about how I progress in my training though, for everyone's sake."

Hiashi allowed a small smile as he nodded. Another long silence followed as Hiashi returned to reading more of the scroll. Naruto grew bored with the two girls still clutching on to him.

"Let's see how I should escape this booby trap of dangerous júken strikes," Naruto mumbled as Hiashi raised an eyebrow, his eyes never leaving the scroll.

"I would think you would understand by now, Uzumaki-san. It is not possible to escape my daughters without suffering a strike or two in painful places," Hiashi dryly said. He could feel Naruto's foxy grin out of view.

"I never give up. Besides, I have something new to try, Hiashi-sama."

Hiashi heard a slight popping sound. Intrigued, he looked over to see a confused-looking clone of Naruto standing behind the sofa that the original and his daughters were on. Naruto then did a simple series of handseals and there was another puff of smoke. It was not hard for Hiashi to see that the original did a **Kawarimi** with the clone, leaving the poor clone to precariously hold his daughters' dangerous sleeping habits at bay. The original showed a triumphant grin while the clone shifted nervously under the girls' tightening grips.

"That takes care of that. Hold down the fort for me, would ya, buddy?" the original patted his clone's head, which glowered at the Boss's cruelty. Hiashi smirked as he saw an idea clearly form in the clone's head and it showed an evil smirk. It then did the same series of seals and another puff of smoke followed.

"Huh?" was Naruto's intelligent reply as he found himself back under the two girls' clutches and the clone was standing behind the sofa with a shit-eating grin.

"It's you who should be holding down the fort, Boss. Ja ne!" the clone said cheerfully before dispelling itself.

It took a moment for Naruto to realize that his clone pulled a fast one on its own creator. An annoyed frown formed on the blonde's face.

"Just why can't I get away from here?" he moaned in dejection.

_Ah…another pleasant evening for me to remember. _Hiashi amusedly thought as he watched Naruto get flustered under his daughters' grip.

**Five Days Later at the Main Gate into Konoha**

Newly promoted Chunins Izumo and Kotetsu, who will soon be known as the "Eternal Chunins" in the future, were spending their day at the gate's guardhouse.

"Man, this is bullshit. We finally get promoted after five years of being genin –we even came close to being called the "Eternal Genins"- and they stick us in this damn guardhouse!" Kotetsu complained.

"Shut up. You should see this as a great honor to serve the village by protecting it from hostiles trying to sneak past us," Izumo retorted harshly.

Before they were able to argue further, they noticed a large party of foreign nins with a man and a prepubescent dirty-blond girl walking alongside him at the front of the party. The guards remained silent but on guard for any possible attack. The foreign nins stopped at a short distance before the gate, allowing the leader and the young girl to walk up to the guardhouse alone, an apparent attempt to calm any tension.

"I am the Yondaime Kazekage and this is my daughter Sabaku no Temari," the man in a robe and hat similar to the Hokage's, only with dark green accents instead of red, introduced himself and the blond girl. The young but pretty girl with her hair tied into four pig-tails gave a hard look at the guards before nodding stiffly. The Kazekage continued.

"We come from Sunagakure and I was invited here by Hokage-dono to discuss several items about our alliance. Here is the message from Hokage-dono."

Izumo nervously took the scroll to open it slowly. He easily confirmed the Hokage's handwriting and the official seal of the Hokage on the letter. He rolled it back up and handed it back to the Kazekage respectfully.

"Welcome to Konohagakure, Kazekage-sama and Sabaku-sama. I will escort you and your party to meet up with the Hokage. He is expecting you," Izumo stiffly said with a respectful bow. The Kazekage simply nodded for the guard to continue. Izumo turned around and lead the Suna party into the village, leaving Kotetsu alone at the guardhouse. He let out a sigh.

"Well, that was interesting. That blonde girl's would have been very cute if she was closer to my age. Though she seemed like she'd rather be anywhere but here next to her Kazekage father. Wonder why that is," Kotetsu mused while he was moving to get back to his seat. Before he could sit down, he noticed something far down the road from the gate… a green speck on the horizon. Curious, the guard decided to walk down the road to get a closer look at the odd sight. Realization slowly crept on him when he got closer and broke into an easy run. Upon arriving at the green speck, he finally confirmed this was the beaten and battered body of Maito Gai.

"What the hell happened here, Gai-san?" Kotetsu inquired as he bent down to the body to check for any wound. There were none but the body stunk as if it acclimated a week's worth of sweat without cleaning up.

"Ugh…my youthfulness…is rather…drained. Water…please…" Kotetsu sighed and shrugged as he reached for his canteen to pour some water through Gai's parched lips.

"My…advice to you, young one…don't ever challenge… Uzumaki Naruto to any contest of…youthfulness. He…will beat you," Gai painfully warned as if he was drawing his last breath and trying to identify whoever murdered him. Kotetsu shook his head and laughed.

"That blond brat? The entire village could have warned you about that before you did whatever you tried with him. Don't mess with the Prankster Prince of Konoha."

After a few minutes, Gai finally regained enough strength to stand up and be helped into the village by Kotetsu.

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**And we'll stop here on a semi-cliffhanger. We finally get to see the first meeting between Temari and Naruto. How will it turn out? **

**I'll just tell you there will be some action (no not like that) in the next chapter and I hope you'll enjoy it. **

**If you were wondering what a scribble of henohenomoheji looks like, just google it. Same goes for "Awesome Face". :-) **

**I'm on a writing streak so the next chapter should be here in a few days or so instead of two weeks. I apologize for that but I had some real life issues and I was so dissatisfied with the first version of this chapter that I wanted to do a complete revision. **


	8. Catching a Firecracker

**So here's another chapter. It came quicker than the followers of this story probably expected but that's thanks to a beta-reader I've partnered up with to discuss ideas and opinions on my writing and making sure this chapter came out with decent quality the first time. I'm surprised at how quickly I could write when I have someone to discuss some ideas with instead of doubting myself if an aspect or two of each chapter sucked. **

**LoverofLemon, thank you very much for your advice. **

**Now enjoy the chapter and I hope you'll like how I described the action scenes. I always think I could use some help in that department.**

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**WARNING: This story will contain mature language, sexual themes, and graphic depictions of violence and gore.**

**DISCLAIMER: I do not own Naruto or any of its characters.**

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**Chapter 8: Catching a Firecracker**

**Three days ago in Sunagakure**

"Oi, Kankuro! Stop wearing women's makeup around the house! It's creepy!" eleven-year old Sabaku no Temari yelled angrily at her younger brother. Nine-year old Kankuro displayed an outraged expression, his face completely covered in white paint with some amount of red streaking down his cheeks toward the ears.

"It's not makeup! It's war paint!"

This went back and forth for a good while. They were arguing in the living room of the Sabaku mansion and eight-year old Gaara was sitting at the bay window on the far wall, staring out over the populace of Suna below the mansion. When Gaara was not having one of his psychotic spells, he was normally a quiet and cold boy who had no interest in the people around him. Right now, listening to the siblings' incessant arguing was getting on his nerves and he was about to have another one of his psychotic episode.

Normally, Temari and Kankuro would have been quiet and careful around their youngest brother. However, the stress of being aware all the time and having it going on so long got to the two siblings and they forgot where they were.

"Shut…up…" a chilling whisper that somehow reached Temari and Kankuro from all the way across the room stopped the two siblings cold in their arguing. Their expressions changed slowly to dread as they looked in the direction of Gaara. At that point, the redheaded boy's killing intent crashed into them and they stumbled back a little.

"Mother…is…calling… for your blood!" Gaara raised his cold voice at the end as he summoned some sand from his gourd. The sand shot out toward the other two siblings, shaped like a giant tendril. Before Kankuro could react, he was violently knocked backward by the whipping sand into a wall, knocking him unconscious instantly. Temari became even more terrified at what was happening as she took up a defensive position in front of Gaara, her legs refusing to simply take her out of the living room and get away.

Gaara smiled insanely as his sand was crawling toward the unconscious Kankuro. Temari, upon seeing this, felt her feet move forward, not backward like she wanted. Next thing she knew, she was standing in front of Kankuro looking at a giant swell of sand about to cover her.

_What the hell am I doing? ! Why am I trying to protect Kankuro? We don't even get along!_

The sand splashing onto her and slowly crawling around her body interrupted any more thought. She gasped as she tried to swat the sand off to no avail. She looked up into Gaara's maniac eyes. His insane smile froze her insides worse than the feel of the sentient sand crawling further up to her chest.

"Gaara…why are you doing this….I'm your sister!" Temari pleaded tearfully. She thought it was her imagination that the sand stopped its movement for an instant and there was a flash of…something in her brother's eyes. That thought was gone in the next instant as the sand continued its progress up to her neck.

_This is it…in the next five second he's going to do the __**Sabaku Sósó **__and my blood and insides will splatter all over this room in my own home. This isn't how I wanted to go…_

Temari took one last panicked gasp of breath before the sand covered her month. She could see Gaara lifting his hand up, fingers spread out as if he was holding an imaginary cup. In the next moment he will clench that fist and Temari will be no more in this world. Kankuro would follow soon after.

Temari stayed still inside the shifting sand for a long moment, awaiting her death. She didn't feel….dead yet. Instead, she felt an odd sensation and the sand on her body seemed to vibrate a little. In the next second, the sand all dribbled off her body, as it seemed to have just died. Shocked that she was still alive, she fell backward, landing on her backside next to the still-unconscious Kankuro. Sighing in relief and exhaustion from the ordeal, she looked up to see what stopped Gaara.

Temari saw her father, the Yondaime Kazekage, standing at the doorway into the room, holding an outstretched hand up. She looked down at the pile of sand that was around her and she saw it glittering unusually. She realized that her father saved her by mixing gold dust with the sand to slow it down and disable it. She heard an inhuman yell of frustration from Gaara. She perked up to see him clutching at his head and what sand he could move was thrashing around him. Next instant, a small golden bundle of sand shot at Gaara. It split into two smaller bundle and wrapped around his legs and his chest and arms to bind him. He fell over and hit the floor hard, finally subdued.

Temari looked up at the ceiling after this was all over and covered her ears to block out the continued frustrated yelling of Gaara. She started to shake and sob as she repeatedly went over the past few minutes in her mind…focusing on how close she came to dying at her own brother's hands.

The Kazekage looked over at Temari, whose body was shaking and racking with sobs, and felt a small twinge of sadness in his chest. He decided she needed some fresh air and he would briefly take her out of town on a long walk to Konoha and back to help her clear her mind. He'd leave Gaara with the Jonin Baki to keep him under control. Kankuro would be content locking himself in his room tinkering with his puppets.

**Present, in the Tower outside the Hokage's Office**

"Temari," the Kazekage's cold and distant voice pulled the young girl out of her thoughts. She looked up to his veiled face, giving him her attention.

"We are about to meet the Hokage. Be sure to be on your best behavior."

She only nodded once and turned to look straight ahead with a somewhat dead expression on her face.

They waited a moment before the Chunin secretary appeared and bowed to them. She told them the meeting has been moved to the formal hall a few doors down the hall. The Kazekage quirked an eyebrow at that but decided not to dwell on it. They walked a short distance down the hall and waited while the secretary opened the door to stick her head in and inform the people inside that the guests were here. They hear a calm "Enter" and stepped inside.

The sight of this room impressed the Kazekage and Temari. It was set up like a traditional Japanese-style meeting hall, with two rows of cushions facing toward a raised platform at the far wall of the room. The entire wall had an intricate mural of a large forest of dark green trees surrounding a large golden flame; apparently alluding to Konoha's famous motto "The Will of the Fire". On the raised platform underneath the mural was a temporary frame holding up a one-way transparent veil. Any one facing the veil only saw shadows behind it. The guests saw there was a silhouette of a person on the veil shaped like the Third Hokage. The Kazekage bowed while Temari did the same, but her eyes were on someone else. She was somewhat curious about the tied-up blond and whiskered boy wearing a bright orange jumpsuit sitting to the side by the raised platform. He had a childish pout on his face, as he seemed to be grumbling about something. The Kazekage never looked over at the boy even once as he kneeled on the cushion closest to the platform while his daughter took a cushion behind him.

"Thank you for your hospitality, Hokage-dono. This is my daughter, Temari," Kazekage indicated the girl behind him before continuing. "Though I have to say I am curious about your use of the veil. It is my first time seeing you behind that in all of our meetings so far."

The Hokage let out a brief chuckle.

"You are always welcome here any time, Kazekage-dono. My apologies for the sudden changes, but you always wear your face veil and, any time we met in Suna, you were always sitting behind something similar to this. I thought I would give it a try for once."

The Kazekage allowed a nod of understanding even at this pitiful excuse.

"It is rather nice to act a little mysterious, isn't it?"

Temari raised an eyebrow slightly at her father's casual (and…amused?) reply to the sudden and unexplained changes. He never liked changes. She continued to glance over at the tied-up boy once in a while. The boy quietly met her gaze most of the times she looked over. She thought he was sniggering about something that she apparently was not in on. _What is he finding so funny?_

Behind the veil, the God of Shinobi silently cursed the young blonde boy nearby. It was bad enough he had to do something like this with important guests to hide himself from anyone's view. If one were to look behind the veil, their eyes would sear off at the sight of his very bright orange Hokage outfit. It was bright orange from top to bottom with blue accents in some places. On the back were some kanjis that read "On Loan from the Future Godaime Hokage."

Sarutobi had no idea how Naruto managed to get into his closet or how he hid the entire wardrobe, leaving only this one. He had no choice but to put it on. Upon arriving in the office, the ANBUs guards promptly fell out of their shadows laughing. Before the embarrassed Hokage could even utter the order, one of the guards automatically offered to retrieve Naruto for him. He was busy scolding the boy and questioning him on the whereabouts of his clothes when he got the message that the Kazekage was coming in for a meeting. Slightly panicking, he changed the meeting to the formal hall and had a paper veil set up quickly. It would be too much for the Hokage to hear the usually cold and stoic Kazekage even chuckle at his odd wardrobe.

"Did the young boy over there do something wrong?" the Kazekage asked as he finally acknowledged the boy's presence for the first time since he and Temari stepped into this room.

"It's nothing too bad. I was scolding Naruto-kun here about a prank he played on me earlier this morning before you and your lovely daughter came in here."

"Oh? So are you planning a fitting punishment for him? Like execution or at least flogging? In my village, it is a crime to do something like that to the kage," The Kazekage asked with feigned seriousness. The boy flinched and sweated comically as he carefully looked up at the Hokage. From where he sat, he was able to clearly see his surrogate grandfather from behind the veil. Temari had to hold back a smirk at the boy' predicament. Her father may be cold and stern, but even he wouldn't do something like that to anyone in Suna for something as minor as a prank. The Hokage seemed to have caught on and he visibly brought a finger up to his chin in thought.

"You are right, Kazekage-dono. Perhaps I have been far too easy on him up until now. Flogging would be too cruel but I can still hit him where it hurt however. How about I make a law forbidding a certain favorite food of his anywhere in the village?" he mused to himself.

Naruto looked up in shock at the Third with a look of betrayal. He gave a look that seemed to say: _You wouldn't do that._

The Hokage returned the look: _Keep trying me and I might just do that for real, boy._

Temari had to suppress a giggle at this silent exchange. The Hokage looked over at the young blonde girl sitting behind the Kazekage and, upon seeing her disinterested expression, wondered if she would have liked to at least enjoy herself on this short trip.

"Ok, I think we have tormented the poor boy enough." Naruto showed his irritation at this. "It's time we start our discussion. You did tell me in your letter you are going to be here for a short time and you needed to get back to Suna as soon as possible."

The Kazekage nodded in affirmation.

"Then, Kazekage-dono, would your daughter appreciate a small tour around the village? I am sure she wouldn't want to sit through this boring meeting."

Temari visibly perked up at that. She'd rather be elsewhere so she doesn't have to be around her father any longer than necessary. Her father seemed to think for a minute before replying.

"That would be excellent, Hokage-dono. It is her first time visiting this village. Would you like that, Temari?"

"….Yes, Kazekage-sama," Temari replied neutrally though she felt relief at not having to sit through this meeting. The Hokage, and even Naruto, quirked their eyebrows at the girl's stiff address toward her own father. It did not seem to bother the Kazekage however.

"Excellent. Naruto-kun, think of this as your punishment for what you did earlier. Please escort Kazekage-dono's daughter for the day and be on your best behavior. You will meet us at the main gate at five.," the Hokage commanded of the boy, his expression growing serious. Naruto knew not to mess with the Third when he was like this so he replied with a silent nod. At that moment, he heard a thud and looked down to see a kunai stuck into a floor next to him. Sarutobi apparently threw it and the boy did not even see him move. It cut the rope he was tied up in and the rope fell off to free him. Gulping at this method, he slowly got up and walked over to the blond girl and respectfully bowed.

"Hello, my name is Uzumaki Naruto. It's nice to meet you."

Temari smiled briefly at the boy's respectful behavior. Despite his orange jumpsuit, she thought he was cute… especially with the gorgeous deep blue eyes, the whiskers that made him look a little rugged, and she would have liked to have that beautiful sun-kissed blond color instead of her own dirty-blond hair color. She rose to her feet and politely bowed to him.

Naruto noticed she was taller than him by quite a bit so apparently she was a few years older than him. She had slatted teal eyes that made her look somewhat exotic and her thick dirty blond hair was tied up into four short pigtails. He thought the unusual style suited her. She was wearing a black battle kimino that went down from her neck to her calves. It was a very conservative style. She finished it off with a large white sash around her waist, black sandals, and fingerless gloves. He noticed a small ornate fan tucked into the sash and wondered if she was learning to use battle fans as a kenjutsu style. He saw that style while he was searching for his own style and thought it was noble of her that she was learning a difficult but powerful style. He deduced she was primarily wind-natured like it was required for that style.

"Uzumaki-san, it is nice to meet you too. I am Sabaku no Temari and I look forward to your guidance," the blond girl spoke formally as she finished her bow.

"You can call me Naruto, Sabaku-san. I'm not one for formalities unless I have to," Naruto said with a smile.

"Then I would prefer to go by Temari as well, Naruto-san. I have two siblings so it gets confusing with just the surname."

The boy nodded as he walked off toward the door, followed by Temari. Stopping at the door, he and Temari turned around and bowed to the kages before they stepped out.

After the door closed, the Kazekage turned around to face the Hokage.

"So, tell me, Hokage-dono. Exactly why are you hiding behind that screen? I assume it had something to do with that young boy's prank you were scolding him about."

The Hokage visibly cringed and sighed in defeat as he stood up to slowly step out from behind the veil, his all-orange Hokage robes in full view. There was a dead silence for a minute as both kages stared at each other.

Outside with Temari and Naruto, they heard laughter erupt from the room they just left.

"That was…the Kazekage's voice. He never laughs," Temari murmured in shock with a small shudder.

"Guess the old man told a funny joke," Naruto cheekily said with a foxy grin, deciding not to elaborate further on the details as they reached the stairs leading down. Temari was slightly confused at how he addressed the Hokage, but decided not to inquire about that for now as she was just too stunned about hearing her father heartily laugh like that for the first time ever in her life.

"So is there anything in particular you would like to do, Temari-san?" Naruto cut into her daze as they stepped outside onto the street in front of the tower.

Temari just shrugged with a neutral expression. Thanks to having Gaara as her brother, and her brash and blunt nature, any children her age would not play with her. Aside from training, she rarely did anything fun since Suna was not a friendly place with its harsh desert environment. Life there was more about surviving rather than enjoying anything. So she only had two hobbies…floral appreciation and…_that. _She would be embarrassed if anyone found out about that since it could ruin the tough image she built up if word got out.

"Ok then…how about ice cream?"

"What is that?"

Naruto face-faulted.

"W-wait…you've never had it? !" Naruto looked at Temari as if she grew a new head. She found his awe-struck expression irritating as he apparently was referring to a luxury item that the other villages took for granted compared to her home village. She had been through this many times with visiting dignitaries.

"Suna is different from Konoha in that we spend a lot of our times just surviving and making sure we have enough crop and water to live on. We never had much time for luxuries that you Konoha people apparently do," Temari replied in a cold tone. She apparently did not appreciate being reminded that the other Great Shinobi Villages prospered compared to her own. The tone gave Naruto a shiver.

_I thought she seemed like a nice person at first. _

_**Don't be quick to make decisions about her. You never were able to have much until recently so remember that as you think in her position. People in Suna spend their whole lives without what you have been able to enjoy over the past couple years. Of course she would hate to be reminded of what Suna doesn't have. **_

_I guess I should be careful about reacting like that then._

"Sorry, I was surprised since I just could not fathom that no one had heard of ice cream. It's quite good. I'll take you to this place and you can try it…if you'd like, Temari-san."

"….Ok. Lead the way, Naruto-san."

They started walking in the direction of the ice cream parlor. Almost right away, she noticed nasty glares directed at Naruto from the villagers around them. Temari looked over at Naruto, and it was obvious he was deliberately ignoring the glares. She decided to inquire about this.

"Naruto-san, I am noticing people around us are giving you nasty glares. Did you do something to make them angry at you?"

Naruto whipped his head at her, surprised at her directness so soon into their first meeting.

_She doesn't beat around the bush, does she?_

_**Blunt and not afraid to speak her mind…almost the opposite from your shy friend. I already like this female. **_

"Um…yeah. I have quite a reputation in this village as a prankster. There aren't many people here that I haven't pranked. Hell, I even pranked Jiji…I mean the Hokage just this morning,"

Temari narrowed her eyes at him. Her slatted eyes easily made this expression more imposing and he shrank back a little. He knew she could tell he was deflecting away from the real reason. The older girl could tell the glares were not simply because of his pranks. It went deeper than that. The only reasons she could think of that a young boy like him would retrieve so much hate is that if he was born from a family who had betrayed the village in the past or he was like Gaara. She shuddered at that thought and could not believe this boy, who was obviously sane and seemed kind, would hold a demon within him. Although she was curious about this boy's history, she decided to be tactful and left the topic at that.

Upon arriving in front of the ice cream parlor, Naruto was dismayed to discover that it had closed for the day due to an issue with the freezer. He looked up at Temari apologetically while she looked back with some disappointment in her escort's ability to entertain her.

Growing nervous, Naruto suggested a sweets shop as the next destination. Not surprisingly, Temari was intrigued by the prospect of a shop that sold nothing but desserts, which she only had several times in her life. Arriving at the shop, they were disappointed to find it closed because of a shortage of flour and sugar.

"Dammit! Why the hell won't this damn village let me entertain one simple guest! ?" the boy protested to no one in particular. Temari had to hold back a smirk. While this visit may not have been going well, she had to admit she found this boy's expressive and goofy nature refreshing.

"I know! How about a quick stop at the Ichiraku Ramen stand? They make delicious ramen with many different flavors. It's definitely open!" Naruto declared. Temari never had ramen before and she was curious about it. She simply nodded her head.

A quick walk later found Naruto on all fours in front of the ramen stand, crying dramatically as he repeatedly slammed a fist onto the ground. Temari was standing next to him with a blank expression, staring at the stand that had its shutters down. A small note posted on a shutter explained that the owner and his daughter were out of town for a merchants' retreat.

"How could you, Teuchi-ossan and Ayame-neechan? ! The one time I really needed you, you betray my trust!" Naruto cried melodramatically to the sky. Temari just shook her head at her escort's antics.

"Definitely open, huh?" she deadpanned with a cool tone that froze Naruto in his tirade.

"I guess it's no good, Naruto-san. I should go back to the Hokage's Tower and wait for the meeting to end. I appreciate your efforts but it looks like Kami is against us today for some reason."

Naruto opened his mouth and looked like he was about to persuade her otherwise, but slumped his head dejectedly.

"I guess it's for the best. Sorry we could not do anything today, Temari-san. I'm betting if I try to suggest another place, it'll explode into a massive fireball just to spite the hell out of me. It just isn't my day."

Temari allowed a small smile at his humor. They started their walk back toward the tower, the boy a step ahead of the older girl. As they were walking down a street lined with shops, one of the window displays caught Temari's eye. As she turned her head to have a better look, her eyes widened.

"So, Temari-san, mind telling me a bit more about Suna? I've never been outside of this village so I always wondered what other places are like," Naruto suddenly asked as he walked with both arms behind his head. He did not get a response.

"Sorry, I guess you have to be secretive about your village, even though we are allied. I just wanted to know what life in your village was like in general, not its secrets," the nervous boy tried to clarify. When he still heard nothing, he was starting to get irritated.

"Look, Temari-san, it's fine if you don't want to talk about it but you could at least reply…." he trailed off as he realized that his guest was not next to her. He stopped in his track and whipped his head around to look for the blond girl. He immediately found her standing in front of a shop, her hands on the window and her nose was almost pressing against it. Curious about what caught her attention, he walked over next to her. He saw that it was a handcrafting shop and he looked into the window display. He noticed the blond girl was hungrily eyeing a bunch of small and cute animal-themed knitted dolls. Drool was practically coming out of her open mouth as she whispered "Cute…" to no one in particular.

Naruto was so stunned that he saw this older and proper girl become like this that he just stared at her with his mouth gaping. Temari jolted out of her trace and remembered where she was and shot straight up as she turned her head around to see if anyone saw. To her horror, she saw Naruto standing next to her with a dumb expression on his face, as if he could not believe what he saw.

"You saw…." Temari whispered in a trembling voice as she let her long bangs overshadow her eyes. Naruto jolted in surprise at the threatening tone in her voice. He spent enough time with Ino to know that he had upset this girl greatly, even though he didn't think he did anything wrong.

"You saw…. therefore…you must die…" Temari intoned with a sickly sweet expression as she reached for the ornate fan stuck in her sash. Naruto nervously took a step back. Temari promptly lunged forward as she opened the small fan. The boy responded by gracefully jumping into a backward somersault to avoid her swipe with the fan. He wasn't expecting to be hit with a strong gust of wind generated by the swipe as he landed, however. He would have been blown back if he hadn't instinctively adhered to the ground with chakra in his feet.

_She definitely has wind-nature chakra!_

_**For her to be able to generate that much wind without seals…she is very impressive. She will be a powerful kunoichi in the future. **_

Temari continued her charge forward, her expression determined.

"Oi…wait! I didn't do anything wrong! Don't tell me this is because I just discovered you have a cute hobby? Just how far will you go? ! You don't need to prove that you're already strong!" Naruto quickly said with both his hands up in front of him. Temari suddenly stopped her next swipe just when the fan was about to hit Naruto. She blinked owlishly at his nervous expression.

"You…don't think it's weak?"

"Of course not! You're strong and I can tell that! Just because you have a cute side doesn't mean you should hide it all the time."

Hearing that, she blushed adorably and she squatted down tightly with her knees touching her chest, her fan dangling by its strap on her wrist. She covered her reddening face with both hands in the middle of the street. Seeing this from whom he thought to be a stiff and prideful girl made his cheeks slightly pink. He thought only one thing similar to the ones from several other onlookers who caught the brief scuffle.

_She could not get any cuter than this if she tried. _

_**It would be too boring if she's just proud and stiff all the time. It's nice she has this side. **_

_It sounds like you're trying to talk Temari-san up to me for some reason, sensei, because I don't know why else you would sound interested in other 'puny humans'. _

Kurama just shrugged.

_**I'm just saying what's on my mind. **_

He figured he wasn't going to get any more out of Kurama about this so he decided to put that aside. He squatted down so he'd be level with Temari.

"Temari-san, if you'd like we can go into that shop and see if we can get you a couple of these dolls," Naruto offered. Temari perked her head up at that, her embarrassment completely forgotten. Her teal eyes sparkled as she had on this adorable and somewhat childish expression.

_Ok, I was wrong. She just got cuter. _

Fifteen minutes later found both blondes stepping out of the shop. Temari was wearing a happy smile as she was holding and petting a small knitted doll that looked like a weasel in her hands. Naruto smiled at this display as he finally got to see Temari open up a little.

"So you have a hobby of collecting and knitting your own dolls. I think it suits you, Temari-san," he remarked. Temari blushed slightly at her escort's compliment.

"I keep a small collection at home. Only my brothers know of this so you're the first one to find out. They're basically my pretend friends because I don't have any back in Suna..." Temari trailed off, shocked that she'd told a boy she just met…a foreign one even… something like that. She just felt so calm around Naruto that she felt it was okay to open up a little. She glanced over at her fellow blonde, expecting to be made fun of. To her surprise he just nodded as if he seemed to understand.

"I know the feeling. I'm an orphan and I live by myself. Until recently I didn't have friends so I just talked to the plants I keep around my apartment once in a while," Naruto replied without any hesitation. Temari smiled at her escort's honesty.

"So you got a green thumb, huh? Didn't peg you for that type," Temari teased a little.

"Didn't peg you as the knitting type."

"Touché, Naruto-san."

They chuckled as they walked down the street. Naruto saw that they had about two hours until the kages' meeting was over. He decided to show her his new favorite place.

"Temari-san, mind coming with me? I just thought of a place I think you'd like," Naruto inquired with a smile. Temari had some trepidation about trying another place with their recent luck, but decided she would give this one more chance as she saw the sincere expression in his deep blue eyes. She nodded and they both walked off in a new direction.

Ten minutes later found them standing on top of the Hokage Monument, more specifically on top of the Yondaime's head. The view overlooking the entire village of Konoha was breathtaking and Temari took in the beautiful scenery with awe. She noticed Naruto sitting down on the stone surface then he patted his hand on an area next to him. Complying, she sat down next to him. They sat in silence for a while as she absent-mindedly fiddled with her new weasel doll in her hands.

"My youngest brother just tried to kill me the other day," Temari calmly said as she felt a gentle breeze whipping at her pigtails. She didn't understand why she was telling this to someone she just met but she felt somewhat comfortable with him. Small tears stung her eyes as she could feel Naruto whip his head toward her in shock. He remained silent though, apparently an indication she could continue if she wanted.

She went on to explain how her brother was being driven insane by a power inside him and their father didn't care. He'd rather make his own son into a more effective weapon, hence why she was cold toward her own father, among other reasons. She elaborated on what happened last time he went insane and that it was the closest she came to being killed. Throughout this explanation she broke down further into silently weeping as Naruto carefully rubbed her back. By the end, she let it all out and was leaning against Naruto for comfort. A long silence followed before Naruto finally spoke up.

"I'm sorry you had to deal with that for most of your life. I never had any family so I can't imagine what it's like to be hurt by a close relative. Tell you what…I'm training to become the strongest shinobi ever. Next time you come here, bring your brother along and I'll bust him down a peg or two and teach him to appreciate his siblings more," Naruto said with a bright smile in an attempt to cheer Temari up. She allowed a small laugh as she dried her tears off.

"Not in that horrible outfit, you won't! You won't survive long in the shinobi world dressed like that," she retorted. She giggled when Naruto huffed at her teasing.

"Would it help if I told you entire squads of ANBUs could not find me even if their lives depended on it when I actually get serious about hiding from them?"

Temari remained unconvinced.

"This, I would have to see to believe it."

"I'd show you, but right now it's about time for your father to leave so I'll have to take you back to the main gate," Naruto said as he checked the position of the sun. Temari sighed in disappointment at having to part like this so suddenly but she nodded as they both got to their feet to walk back down to the gate.

As they walked toward the gate, Kurama suddenly spoke up.

_**Naruto…that girl's brother…she mentioned him as being able to control sand. You should be careful around him if you meet him in the future. **_

_Something I need to know?_

_**Yes. The One-Tailed Beast has the ability to control sand. The Ichibi's name is Shukaku and he is very bloodthirsty and insane. He would try to influence his host's mind if he could. I would not be surprised if this girl's brother is the host and is going insane thanks to that. While Shukaku is weak compared to me in terms of power, he is very adaptable and crafty with the use of sand. Watch yourself around this boy in the future. **_

Naruto mentally nodded his head, deciding to file that information away for later.

_So the reason she's been having a hellish life is most likely because of a Jinchuriki. I can't see anything going over well if Temari-san finds out I am one too. _

_**Sorry you have to deal with this.**_

Naruto raised an eyebrow.

_It's not like you to apologize about something we both can't help. We're linked like this for the rest of my life and there always will be people who can't accept that fact so I'll just be happy with the few people who would. _

Kurama remained silent and Naruto decided to leave her alone for the time being as he continued walking with Temari in silence.

**Elsewhere in the Village**

"I can't believe they closed the ice cream shop for today. This is a rare off day from training and I wanted some banana-flavored ice cream!" Hyuuga Hanabi grumbled as she walked briskly back to the Hyuuga compound with her escort walking behind her.

"I am sorry this happened, Lady Hanabi. We will be able to return another day however," the Hyuuga guard tried to appeal to his charge. Hanabi didn't say anything more as she continued to seethe a little. After they walked in silence for a moment, she heard a thunk and a grunt. Next thing she knew, her guard's body fell forward besides her and it landed on the ground with a thud. She could see blood seeping down the man's forehead. In a panic she turned around to see who caused this only to see two pairs of hands reaching for her. She didn't have time to call for help when a hand clamped over her mouth.

**At the Main Gate Thirty Minutes Later**

Naruto and Temari arrived at the gate just before five o'clock. They found the Hokage and Kazekage standing by the gatehouse talking. The rest of the Suna party was loitering around outside the gate waiting to leave. Naruto noticed the Hokage had changed his outfit to a black traditional shinobi outfit, complete with a grey gauntlet on his right arm, sandals, and a white piece of fabric embedded with the kanji for "Third Hokage" covering his shoulders. His armored battle hood and bandana with his hitai-ate hung at his waist. The kages turned to greet the children.

"Hello, Naruto-kun and Temari-san. How was your day?" Sarutobi greeted as Temari bowed to him.

"I had a good time. Thank you for having Naruto-san escort me."

"I'm glad to hear that. Naruto-kun can be a good boy when he's not being mischievous."

"Oi Jiji-san, why are you wearing that outfit? Is there a battle going on?" Naruto inquired innocently before being conked on the head by a slightly irritated Hokage.

"I hope you have not forgotten your prank in which you hid all of my wardrobe and left me with nothing but a bright orange Hokage outfit. Unlike you with your jumpsuit, I refuse to be caught dead in public wearing that. I was forced to unseal my combat outfit just so I could see the Suna party off," the Hokage said with a twitching eyebrow. Temari had to giggle at what Naruto's prank turned out to be.

"Ooh….that! Sorry Jiji-san, I did forget…hehe," Naruto apologetically said with his sheepish pose. The Third just sighed and went back to finish up his conversation with the Kazekage. Temari and Naruto took a brief walk a small distance out the gate before facing each other.

"Jiji-san?" Temari raised a quizzical eyebrow.

"Oh, he's sort of my grandfather figure. He takes care of me sometimes while I'm living by myself," Naruto clarified. Temari nodded with a gentle smile.

"Naruto-san, I just want to thank you for coming along and listening to me. I'm sorry I dumped all of that on you," Temari bowed before a sheepish Naruto.

"It's not a big deal, really. I had a tough life too so I could understand some of what happened to you. I just hope you will find a way to fix all of this. If not, then I will do it instead," Naruto said with a confident expression. Temari blushed a little at her fellow blonde's sincerity. She decided it would not hurt if she kept in touch with him via letters.

"Naruto-san, I would like –," Temari was interrupted by a Konoha Chunin suddenly appearing at the Hokage's side.

"I apologize, Hokage-sama, but you need to know that a Main Hyuuga member had been abducted. We found her guard dead near the Hyuuga Compound. We're not able to pinpoint who or where the kidnappers went. All we know is that it's been about thirty minutes since she was taken," the Chunin said urgently. The Hokage narrowed his eyes at the news and everyone heard a snarl from Naruto. Temari was surprised when he suddenly left her side and ran up to the Chunin.

"Who was it! ? Who's been taken? !" the boy growled. The Chunin was about to respond when…

"It was my daughter Hanabi," a man's voice drew everyone's attention to a tall Hyuuga man approaching at a brisk pace with a girl at his side. Panic was evident on Hinata's face while Hiashi was barely keeping a hold on his own emotions.

There was another angry growl from Naruto as Temari assumed he knew whoever was kidnapped. The blond boy put on a deadly serious expression as he turned to the Hokage.

"Hokage-sama, I believe I can help find her quickly, but I need your permission," he seriously addressed the older man. Sarutobi was surprised to say the least. His surrogate grandson had never addressed him like this before.

"What do you intend to do?"

"You know I have that great sense of smell. I know Hanabi's scent very well and my clones can smell it just as well. I'll use some of the 'power' to bring up tons of them and send them out in all directions until one of them finds Hanabi's scent. It'll dispel to let me know where and I'll go full… power to catch up with the kidnappers and try to slow them down until backup comes," Naruto could be seen hesitating to mention his hidden power but he was determined to do it.

The Hokage had to admit that was the best plan. He was sure it would take too long to form an organized search party and pick up the trail before the kidnappers got out of Fire Country. However, it would mean the boy revealing his nature to everyone nearby, including Naruto's friend Hinata.

"Naruto-kun…are you sure?"

"Hanabi is precious to me. I can't stand by and worry if people could hate me afterward when she's in danger and I could save her."

"Uzu-….no… Naruto-san…" Hiashi's voice interjected. Naruto whipped his head toward Hiashi, surprised that he was addressed as such by the clan head.

"Please do what you can to help rescue my beloved daughter. I will talk with Hinata about this in the meanwhile and I will make sure she understands," Hiashi bowed deeply at his hips. Hinata was stunned at her father's action and his faith in this boy. It was as if he knew Naruto had a hidden ability that could save her little sister.

"You have my permission. We're outside the barrier so the chakra from your release won't bother anyone inside the village. Do what you can and I will follow the trail you leave to back you up as quickly as I can," the Hokage allowed.

Temari was watching all of this with growing restlessness. The way Naruto talked about his 'power'. The way the Hokage and that Hyuuga man seemed to know he had a unique ability. She was starting to connect the dots and she didn't like the answer. As if on cue, Naruto turned toward her and she flinched a little.

"Temari-san…I'm really sorry. I didn't want to scare you but I have to do this. I hope you'll forgive me."

Naruto then quickly hopped to the middle of a large grassy area next to the gate and landed on all four like an animal. He started to bare his teeth as he concentrated on bringing out something from within. In the next moment, everyone saw the boy's eyes flash red and they could feel a growing and terrible presence deepening in the air as a small crater formed under Naruto. The presence seemed to press down on everyone but the Hokage and Hiashi as they seemed unfazed. The Kazekage widened his eyes in shock at this boy's power. Hinata involuntarily clutched onto Hiashi, afraid of the sudden presence. She activated her Byakugan to see red chakra seeping throughout her friend's body and gasped. The Suna party fell to their knees at once, trembling before this unknown presence. Temari was the worst off as this pressure reminded her exactly of Gaara's killing intent, only this one was worse! Her body trembled, her teeth clattered, and her eyes were wide with terror. She fell backward onto her backside and was clumsily scrambling backward away from the terrible presence.

_It's impossible! Why did Naruto-san have to be like Gaara? This is a joke!_

Naruto seemed to have finished building up the charka as he stood up. He formed the cross symbol.

"**Tajú Kage Bushin no Jutsu!" **the boy yelled at the top of his lungs only to be surrounded by a massive smoke cloud covering the entire grassy area. The terrible presence in the air disappeared. Everyone assumed the power was apparently used to create this jutsu. The smoke cleared away to show an astonishing sight. There were clones of Naruto everywhere as far as anyone could see. There had to be thousands. There were even clones standing on the large defensive wall bordering the grassy area as the area was simply overflowing.

"Ok, boys! When you find Hanabi-chan's scent, dispel to let the rest of us know! After that, the rest of you converge toward where the trail was found. Follow it and try to slow down the kidnappers when you catch up until I get there! Go!" the real Naruto yelled from within the group and all the clones jumped and disappeared in all directions.

A long moment of silence followed where no one said anything. Naruto just stood still alone in the middle of the grassy area, feeling a little vulnerable standing by himself for everyone to stare at him. He was growing afraid as he was readying himself for any negative reaction.

"Naruto-kun?" A whisper carried into the still air. Everyone turned toward Hinata, her eyes were wide open in shock as she gingerly stepped up close to within twenty feet of her friend. She was the closest to him of anyone.

"What was that?" She whispered again. Naruto looked down, pain evident in his eyes. He let out a sigh and looked up at her with a determined expression.

"That was me using the power of the Kyuubi no Yoko sealed within me to help create these clones," Naruto evenly said, his gaze set with Hinata's own as she gasped. Temari let out a quiet whimper, as she knew the Kyuubi was much stronger than Shukaku.

"And now I plan on using more of the power in a minute to get stronger and faster so I can use the speed it provides to catch up with the kidnappers as quickly as possible. I'm sorry I kept it from you for so long, Hinata-chan," Naruto's voice cracked as he was expecting Hinata to lash at him in anger for holding the Kyuubi.

"But…how? I thought the Kyuubi died eight years ago?" Hinata's tone seemed to sound more curious than afraid, which surprised Naruto. He hopefully looked up at Hinata's concerned expression. There was no trace of fear or hatred.

"I'll answer that, Lady Hinata. The Yondaime Hokage did defeat Kyuubi but he could not kill the demon. He did the only thing he could do, which was to seal the demon into a newborn. The newborn that was used for the sealing stands before you. The reason you did not know that was because I created a law forbidding everyone in Konoha to openly talk about that on pain of death. So please do not blame Naruto-kun for not telling you. He was only following my recommendations," the Hokage spoke softly. Hinata widened her eyes before letting her bangs overshadow them.

"Naruto-kun…you.."

Naruto flinched as he was expecting Hinata to get angry with him any minute. He certainly wasn't prepared for her jumping toward him to wrap her arms around his neck.

"Now I understand everything! I know why those stupid villagers hate you! I'm so sorry you had to suffer, Naruto-kun! You have no idea how much of a relief it is for me to know why they hurt you and why you put up with it!" she cried, her tears flowing as she imagined the pain her friend must have endured. Naruto was too stunned to hug her back as he felt happy tears flow down his cheeks. He told someone and she didn't hate him…she accepted him for who he is! After a long few minutes of sobbing, Hinata had to pull back and sniffled.

"We'll talk more. Please…use everything to save my little sister. She's one of my precious people, too…" she pleaded. Naruto smiled brightly.

"I promise, Hinata-chan. And I never go back on my promises, ever!" he declared loudly. Hinata nodded and stepped back to the edge of the grassy area. Hiashi joined her.

"Naruto-san, please be careful and make sure my daughter will be ok," Hiashi simply said. Before Naruto could reply…

"Why…" a trembling voice drew everyone's attention.

"Why do you trust him so much? He's just going to blow up and kill you all one day!" Temari shouted in terror as she tried to make sense of this whole thing. Hinata's expression suddenly turned dark at this unknown girl's tone.

"Why did you act nice to me? Was it to fool me until you can kill me?" she snarled at the blonde boy. Temari did not want to believe there was another Gaara around her. She's had enough of the terrors she suffered with her own brother.

She immediately regretted what she said when she saw Naruto's expression shatter and his beautiful blue eyes dulled as he slowly looked down at the ground with a pained look. She could literally hear his heart breaking. It felt like she was doused with ice cold water and she regained control over her emotions. For some reason, it hurt her deeply now when she said these awful words out loud. She thought about apologizing quickly but that was forgotten when she heard a snarl and turned her head to see the indigo-haired girl rush at her with her hands posed to strike. She could see the veins around Hinata's eyes bulging with rage. She heard Naruto shout for his friend to stop but it apparently fell on deaf ears.

Temari could not react in time as Hinata struck out with a two-finger thrust aimed directly at the bridge of her nose. The blonde closed her eyes to prepare for the pain but it never came. She opened her eyes a few second later to see the striking hand trembling an inch from her face. She saw that the girl's father caught up and grabbed her wrist to stop this girl's advance. She felt some of the Suna escorts jump up behind her, ready to take out their weapons to defend the Kazekage's daughter if they needed to.

"You will cease this, daughter. Now." Hiashi calmly said. Hinata strained against the grip.

"I will not, Father! Her stupid ignorance hurt Naruto-kun! He did not deserve that!" she snarled, pure rage evident in her voice. Hearing this person defend Naruto caused Temari to wish she took back her words as she remembered the brief time she spent with Naruto on the monument. Hiashi looked like he would have to get physical to stop Hinata.

"Hinata-chan! Stop this!" Naruto's shout from where he stood seemed to have finally gotten through to Hinata as she stopped straining against her father's grip.

"You don't know what Temari-san had been through. She has reasons to fear me," Naruto calmly said and Temari felt even worse. The person she hurt deeply was defending her, and she could see the hurt and dead-looking expression still on his face.

"But she…" Hinata tried.

"Leave her alone. She's about to leave so let her go. We won't have to see her again, ok?" he reasoned as he turned away. The statement's finality and the gesture felt like they punched an ice cold hand into Temari's chest and squeezed her heart. Hinata seemed to have calmed down some but she gave Temari one more angry glare. She then turned to walk with her father back next to the Hokage. Temari slumped, looking down at the ground as she could not look up at Naruto anymore.

Naruto briefly glanced at Temari slumped over on the ground and he could tell she regretted her recent outburst. He enjoyed his time with her but he supposed her emotional scars at the hands of her brother were too great. It was best she didn't have anything to do with him anymore.

_Though, hearing that from someone I just met today hurt worse than the worst insults the villagers, some of who I saw all my life, threw at me. I wonder why that is. _

He flinched as he got a memory from one of the clones. He could almost smell Hanabi's scent as if was here.

"One of my clone found her trail. It's northeast of here. It smells like there were three other people with her. From what I've seen from the clone's observations, they weren't very good at covering up their trail," Naruto announced aloud.

"Land of Hot Water is in that direction. We do not have any treaty with that country so if they make it in there, we cannot follow. They must be Chunins or even Genins if they're not covering up their trails well. It does not mean you can be careless though. Only engage if you know you have a shot," the Hokage advised. Naruto just nodded as he got down on all four and seemed to concentrate even harder. The terrible presence came back in full force and it was even stronger this time. However, everyone were expecting it this time and withstood the presence better, with the exception of Temari who still involuntarily trembled. Naruto's features turned positively feral with his enlarging whiskers, fangs showing past his lips, his fingernails extending into claws, and his eyes became more slatted and they had red silted pupils now.

The air around Naruto started to twirl around everywhere and massive amount of red chakra leaked out of the blonde's body. He threw his head up in a powerful roar, and even more chakra came out at once in an instant, causing a large crater to form underneath Naruto and a brief earthquake followed. This forced everyone around him to take a step back at this awesome power. The chakra seemed to whip around in random directions before it started to compress around the boy's body to form what looked like a shroud and it was shaped like a fox. Everyone could see a tail form …only to be joined by another tail a moment later. Naruto let out a loud exhale as he directed his bright red eyes at Hinata, who was staring at him in awe, before he spoke in a deeper and rumbling voice.

"**Ok. I'll be going, everyone. I'll explain more later, Hinata-chan. Temari-san…" **

Temari flinched at her name being called and she still could not look Naruto in his eyes.

"**I'm sorry you had to see this. Good luck with your situation and I hope you'll be happy eventually. If ...you ever need help, the offer's still good. Take care and goodbye." **

Before Temari could try to say something, she was blown back a little like everyone else when Naruto disappeared in an astonishing blur of speed, causing a gust of wind to whip out. Next thing she saw was a trail of dust leading around Konoha's tall wall to the northeast as it disappeared into the distance.

Hinata turned to wrap her arms around her father's waist as he patted her back.

"I hope he'll find her. I can't lose her, Father…." She trailed off. Hiashi could only nod. They stood there, not willing to move until Naruto returned… hopefully with Hanabi. Sarutobi issued some orders to some arriving Konoha nins and ANBUs and turned to his Wind counterpart.

"I am sorry you had to see a domestic issue just now. Unfortunately our goodbyes will have to be short since I'm going to take a quick stroll into the forest and make sure Naruto-kun is ok. Goodbye and have a safe trip back to Suna," the Third briskly spoke as he put his bandana and armored hood on his head and then disappeared in a blur of speed after Naruto.

The Kazekage narrowed his eyes as he watched the Hokage disappear. He slowly walked up to his party and ordered them to make preparations to leave. He looked over at Temari, who was still sitting on the ground staring at the spot where Naruto was standing a moment ago, tears flowing down her cheeks.

_I'm sorry, Temari. It seems all I did when I brought you here was give you another bad memory. _

He turned his head toward where Naruto disappeared.

_But that boy…he is strong for his age. He may be able to beat my son in combat as he is. The meeting was not successful in getting them to redirect the missions from the Wind Daimyo that we desperately need. I'll have to cease the council's assassination attempts on Gaara and focus on improving him to match Konoha's Jinchuriki should there be a conflict in the future._

**Fifteen Minutes Later in the Forest Heading Northeast**

Naruto quickly came upon Hanabi's scent and had been following it for the past ten minutes. The landscape blurred by him at an insane speed as he ran on all fours through the thick forest. The longer he ran, the faster he seemed to go as he felt his determination to find Hanabi growing. He blurred by most of the clones he created earlier as they loudly encouraged him to hurry up and that they'll catch up soon. He started to get memories from the clones ahead of him as they had engaged Hanabi's kidnappers. They were defeated easily but the information from the memories was valuable.

The clones closest to the one that found Hanabi's trail chased down a group of missing nins and Naruto saw there were three, like Naruto had deduced from the scents. They were three men, two of them lanky and a large one. The large man had Hanabi, tied-up and gagged, struggling under his arm. They dressed in plain light blue shinobi outfits similar to what Kiri nins wore. Naruto's suspicions were confirmed when one of the clones had a good look at their hitai-ates, which each showed the insignia of Kirigakure with a scratch through it. The way they fought the clones clearly showed them to be around low Chunin-level in skills. That information along with their terrible skills at covering up their trails made Naruto wonder how they broke into Konoha and kidnapped Hanabi.

_**It's most likely an inside job. **_

_What? _

_**It's the only way to explain how those imbeciles got past your village's barrier. They must have had help. Whoever did this is probably letting anyone with enough money pass. Maybe that's also how Kumo found out details about you they should not have known. **_

Naruto narrowed his eyes at the memory of Hizashi's death. He sometimes felt a small guilt in the back of his head that if Kumo hadn't known so much about him, then it wouldn't have led to the political maneuvering which caused Hizashi's unnecessary death.

_I don't like the idea of someone betraying Konoha like that but I'll have to bring this up with Jiji-san. If it was really true, then I would happily rip that son of a bitch into pieces. _

_**Me too, boy. Back to the situation at hand, when you encounter them, go in fast and hard…try to take one or two of them out at once, beginning with the one holding that child. You only have limited time before my chakra starts to hurt your body. If anyone remains, try not to reveal all of your tricks at once. Try to keep one hidden until you lure them in and spring the trap. **_

_I understand, sensei._

With that, Naruto sped up even more as he could feel the clock ticking down on his chakra mode. The scenery around him turned into one big green blur as he focused his heightened vision ahead. He could smell the scents of Hanabi and the kidnappers growing stronger as he got closer. Finally, his vision picked up a hint of light blue. On that cue, he slowed down and leapt up to a tree and bounced off toward another, repeating this silently until he landed on a limb when he had a clear view of the missing nins, especially the large man with Hanabi. They were clearly shaken by the sudden appearance of clones from everywhere and now by the large and terrible presence of Kurama's chakra growing in the air around them. They did not see the blonde up in a tree in the distance winding his arm back as if he was preparing to throw something.

**A Few Minutes Earlier**

Hanabi would not stop struggling and mumbling loudly through her gag as she showed angry defiance on her face, which was an odd reaction from a three-year old girl towards the three men who abducted her. She was bad at obeying orders, and that was before the clones suddenly showed up. She apparently recognized those clones and struggled even harder since then. The leader was getting fed up with the girl. He was happy that they would be dropping the girl off soon with their client at a meeting spot up ahead. He would just have to hold his patience until then. He just wished these pathetic clones would not get in their way and test his patience so much just when they were getting closer. This blonde brat really was annoying.

As they were jumping through the trees in mid-air, they were set upon by a wave of massive and terrible killing intent. It felt like it crashed through all of them from behind and they all had to jump down to the ground to regain their senses. Even Hanabi went slack with fear in the large man's arm for a moment before she started to struggle again, although not as enthusiastically as before.

"Oi…what the hell was that?" the large man whispered, with fear clear in his tone.

"Stay alert! This has to be a genjutsu or something. No human could emit something like that!" the leader barked, trying to keep his own nervousness back.

"Fuck…and I thought this would be an easy mission, especially with that man letting us in and out of Konoha. Our client is just right there beyond here!" the last member of the team spoke up nervously.

They felt the presence grow; pressing down upon them until it finally stopped expanding. For a moment, the team thought they might be able to walk away from this. That relative peace was shattered by the whoosh of a large red charka arm cutting through the air directly at the large man's face. Before the man could react, the hand slammed into his head with a sickening crunch and pushed him back violently, making him drop Hanabi to the ground where he was standing. The hand smashed the large man into a tree with such impact that his skull crushed inward under the hand's grip and his spine snapped in two like a toothpick. He was already dead before he hit the ground.

Naruto had the hand latch on to the same tree and it pulled him in to land at where Hanabi was on the ground. He quickly grabbed her with his right arm and whipped his left arm out, extending another chakra claw toward the two remaining nins. The leader instinctively jumped up out of the way but the remaining nin wasn't so lucky. The red fist smashed into him hard and he was knocked backward into another tree, his head thumping against it with a sickening sound. Letting that red arm dissipate, Naruto then jumped backward before extending one of his tails toward a limb behind him to let it sling him and Hanabi backward high into the trees for cover. The last missing nin was too shocked to see his two comrades struck down so easily. He could not wrap his mind around the fact that the blond brat wasn't normal and his anger overtook his rational thoughts.

"I'm going to kill that fucking brat!" the last missing nin growled as he disappeared into his own cover in the trees. As this was going on, Naruto jumped away a little farther before setting Hanabi down on a tree branch. Figuring time was up with his chakra shroud; he let it dissolve returning him to normal, though he panted slightly as that mode left him tired but still able. Hanabi was overwhelmed that her "Onii-chan" had this much power but she was glad it was him saving her even though the power felt awful. Facing her, Naruto put a finger to his lips to make sure Hanabi would be quiet. She frantically nodded with grateful eyes. He silently cut the rope with his sharpened fingernails and removed the gag. Hanabi quickly hugged him tightly around his neck and he could feel her trembling body as it racked with silent sobs. The boy narrowed his eyes in anger toward the nins for inflicting such a traumatic experience on this young girl. He leaned in to whisper as he gently pried her arms off his neck.

"Hanabi-chan, we can't get away quietly but we do have someone coming. I'm going to distract the last guy. I want you to sit tight with those two…" Naruto indicated two clones that silently appeared behind Hanabi, surprising her slightly. "…and do not come out until you see me or the Hokage."

Hanabi didn't want him to go by himself and she was going to shake her head no but Naruto immediately jumped down to the ground and disappeared out of view. She couldn't go after him thanks to the clones' grip on her. She could only hope he would be okay and activated her Byakugan to try to follow what was happening beyond her hiding spot.

Growling as he dispelled another clone that came out of hiding from the dense foliage around him with his kunai, the missing nin was getting angrier by the minute. Just how long is this brat going to keep sending those clones at him? And just how much chakra did he have? These clones were coming from everywhere and they seem to be growing in the numbers each passing minute.

All of a sudden everything went silent around him. The nin did not hear any more rustling of leaves or branches around him. Not even any animal made a noise. A cold sweat dripped down the man's neck as he concentrated on listening for any slightest noise. Before he could think further on this, the bush in front of him exploded outward to spit out the blond kid who jumped in front of the larger man. The boy's icy cold blue eyes focused on the man's as he snarled, flexing his clawed hands. Somehow, the nin could tell this one was real. He laughed insanely as he made a swipe for him with his kunai, thinking he would be as weak as his clones.

The ex-Kiri nin was shocked to find out he was wrong when Naruto effortlessly deflected his swipe with one of his hands before somersaulting backward toward and up a tree behind the boy. The man recovered from his deflected swipe in time to see the boy bounce off the tree toward him with impossible speed for a child, one of his clawed hands aiming for the face. The man tried to dodge but the boy struck true, leaving four deep horizontal gashes across the man's face.

Roaring in pain, the nin started flailing his kunai around him in a panic as he covered his profusely bleeding face with the other hand. Naruto effortlessly dodged each swipe as he stepped in closer to the man, now nothing more than an injured rabbit trying to stave off death against a fox. A lucky swipe would have cut Naruto in the neck if he didn't grab the wrist before it connected. The nin gasped as the boy kept a firm grip on the wrist before the boy jumped toward a tree, dragging the man along. He bounced off and spun in mid-air toward another nearby tree, still keeping a firm grip on the wrist. The nin cried out in pain as his arm was being twisted to nearly its breaking point. Landing on the second tree, he bounced toward the ground, making the man spin around and fall off his feet easily. Landing on the ground, Naruto let out a grunt of exertion as he pulled the still falling and disorientated man from behind to sling him forward at high speed toward another tree. The nin smashed into the tree with a cry of pain and almost broke it in two. Somehow, the older man stayed conscious but he was in so much pain he couldn't move anything. Realization came to the boy.

_I think I'm starting to understand why you had me practice the__ grappling__ and__ throwing katas of Raging Fox more than the others. _

_**I'm impressed you caught on already in your first life-or-death battle. I predicted that if you faced any threat at this point in your life, it would be against someone adult-sized. Even with your increased strength and speed, the size difference would be too great to make effective use of the striking katas in most cases. Good job on quickly eliminating these three. Now, I think you have some questions for this human.**  
_

"Who sent you?" Naruto growled as he stepped up to the barely conscious man. It took the nin all his effort to perk his head up to glare balefully at the boy. Naruto wasn't fazed.

"It's obvious you're the grunts. There is someone else who wants my friend. I want to know who that is. Also, who helped you break into Konoha?"

"Fuck…you…" the nin forced out, his heated gaze still set on Naruto's ice cold gaze. The boy shrugged.

"Alright, I was trying to help you. The Hokage is coming any minute and the first thing he will do is send you to Interrogation since he will be very particularly interested in the breach in Konoha's defenses. I have heard horror stories about the Head of Interrogation and he'll make my kicking all of your asses seem like a pleasant dream in comparison. If I told the Hokage you offered information, I could put in a good word and it'll make your stay somewhat more pleasant."

"Don't…give…a …fuck. Just…kill…me…"

"Suit yourself," the blonde backed away a few steps and stood there to wait for the Hokage as the man seemed to have fallen into unconsciousness.

_Too bad I can't use your chakra for now. it'd probably scare him shitless. _

_**We'll just have to let the old fart loosen this one's tongue. I wonder why we never covered torture methods. Maybe I'll add that to our lessons.**_

_That sounds unappealing. I don't think I have the looks to pull off a menacing interrogator anyway._

_**On the contrary...I think seeing your disarming smile and your innocent blue eyes while you slowly pull a man's entrails out through his anus might make him want to give up every single detail ever since he was born.**_

Naruto raised an eyebrow.

_You think I have a great smile?_

He grinned upon hearing the fox face-fault in his head. _  
_

_**I would think you would be more alarmed by the other half of my previous statement. I was kind of expecting a tsukkomi to that one. **_

_Sorry to disappoint, sensei. I'm already used to you. _

Kurama snorted at his cheekiness and they fell into silence as he waited for any backup. After a minute of silence, Naruto twitched as he heard rustling in the bush nearby. Upon smelling the scent, he sighed as Hanabi burst out of the leaves.

"What happened to my clones?" Naruto irritably asked the sheepish girl.

"Um…I lost them when I had to pee?" Hanabi lied badly. After a hard look from Naruto, she broke down.

"Alright! I saw you beat this guy so I got free with my júken. I figured it'd be okay if I came to you now, Onii-chan."

"Doesn't matter. If I tell you to stay, you stay. At least listen-" Naruto stopped suddenly as he heard a twig snap. He grabbed the surprised Hanabi and jumped away. Looking back he saw several kunais striking the ground where he was standing. He heard a wet squelch and looked over to the disabled missing nin to see a kunai buried deep into one of the man's eye sockets. He was already dead.

Naruto continued to evade more kunais as he carried the shocked Hyuuga in his arms through some trees. Running into a small clearing, he came face to face with a new enemy. Naruto growled.

"So a Kumo bastard was behind this," Naruto snarled, clutching Hanabi tightly in his arms. Standing before him was a middle-aged man with short graying brown hair. He was dressed in a typical Kumo Jonin outfit, with a black outfit underneath the Kumo's over-the-shoulder flak vest. One of his gray eyes was covered by an eye-patch. The Kumo hitai-ate was displayed proudly on his forehead.

"I'm temporarily an ex-Kumo, but that will change when I come back with that girl. You may have beaten the missing nins but I'm a whole different story. You fought bravely so I will let you go if you give me the girl now," the Kumo Jonin emotionlessly said.

"They never sent you and you're just trying to bribe your way back in with my friend like she's a gift? Maybe I should assume they won't miss you if I kill you right now for even suggesting that in front of me." Naruto spoke evenly with such coldness it made Hanabi shiver and even sent a small chill down the Jonin's spine. The Jonin narrowed his eyes.

"I guess the negotiations have broken down already."

"You could say that and here comes my official rejection!"

The forest surrounding the clearing erupted with loud war cries as countless clones of Naruto jumped out of the trees into the air to drop down on the Jonin. Temporarily surprised, he allowed the first few clones to get close to hitting him.

He saw Naruto and Hanabi run off into the forest while the clones were doing their best to keep him busy.

_Son of a bitch! I didn't think he had a jutsu like that. I'll have to get serious. _

He quickly rushed through some hand seals before shouting "**Raiton: Shockwave!"**

A large dome of lighting expanded outward from the Jonin, shocking and dispelling every clone that converged on him. The dome continued to expand until it barely reached Naruto inside the forest.

Naruto grunted in pain as he felt his legs seize up as a tendril of electricity from the fading dome licked against them. He fell forward, dropping Hanabi who yelped in surprise and rolled to a stop a short distance away. Thinking quickly, he formed the hand sign for the clone jutsu and three clones popped into existence between him and Hanabi.

"You two, take Hanabi and go! Get away as fast as you can! You, transform into her!"

Hanabi cried and struggled as two of the clones grabbed her, making sure to silence her and lock her hands up tightly so she wouldn't use her júken to dispel them, and quickly ran off. It broke his heart to look into Hanabi's desperate eyes begging for him to run too as they faded into the dense vegetation. He saw the third clone transform into Hanabi and lay on the ground next to him, breathing heavily and twitching as if she was struck by the lighting dome too.

_I'd pat myself on the back for such an awesome acting job but no time for that. _

_**It looks like we have no choice. When you see a chance, I'll pump my chakra into you quickly. It'll damage your body since you've used up your time limit for the day but better that than both of us dead. I'll heal you afterward anyway. **_

_Looking forward to that….not._

He flipped himself over and raised himself up on his elbows, with his legs still seizing up, to see the Kumo Jonin approach him and 'Hanabi'.

"You almost made things a little difficult for me for a second. I hope you saw the difference between the trash from Kiri and a Jonin from Kumo. I offered you a chance but you blew it. I'll make your death quick, at least," the Jonin emotionlessly said as he walked up close to 'Hanabi'. 'She' whimpered and cried as 'she' desperately tried to crawl away.

_Damn, I could run a world-class theater troupe all by myself if I ever have to give up being a shinobi. I almost want to save this 'girl' myself out of instinct._

_**Focus, boy. **_

As the Jonin was reaching for 'Hanabi', 'she' suddenly smirked evilly as her eyes turned insane. The Jonin was a little taken aback at this sudden display but before he could think more on this, the 'Hanabi' popped into smoke to reveal that she was a clone of Naruto. It quickly jumped up toward the Jonin with both clawed hands aiming for his neck. The Jonin recovered quickly enough to slam a fist into its face hard, dispelling it.

"You…brat. You managed to distract me long enough to get the real one away. I take back what I said…your death will be slow," the Jonin spoke in monotone as he turned toward Naruto but there were cold fury in his eyes.

_Now's a good time as any, sensei._

"You'll be surprised at how difficult I can be….**to kill!" **Naruto's voice turned demonic at the end as he felt Kurama's chakra envelop his body into a two-tail shroud. True to Kurama's words, he immediately felt burning pain spreading throughout his body and he had to grimace, though at least he regained control of his legs. The transformation had the desired effect on the Jonin however, as he was wide-eyed in terror.

"What the hell? ! You're the cause of that presence I felt not too long ago!" he bellowed as he took a defensive position with a kunai in reverse grip.

_**Got to admit he's got enough balls to stand against my killing intent head on. **_

_Unfortunately, that's a bad thing for us. Got to at least try and get the jump on him anyway. While he's focused on that moment we'll run away. _

Naruto suddenly disappeared in a blur of speed. In the next instant, he was up on a tree trunk behind the Jonin and bounced off to try to slash him with his claws from the blind spot. The Jonin was too experienced as he dodged the swipe by a hair's width. This did not deter Naruto as he bounced up to another tree trunk and shot off to attempt a flying kick at the Jonin's head from another angle. The boy was shocked as the Kumo effortlessly moved in under the kick and countered with a kunai swipe at his face. He had to twist the body to its strained limits to barely avoid the kunai, leaving only a cut on his forehead as he flew underneath the kunai strike.

_Too close!_

_**Get the FUCK out of there!**_

Not arguing with that, he quickly jumped onto another tree and seemed to prepare for another attack but instead the boy bounced to another tree further away and jumped up to start swinging through the forest. The Jonin was a little surprised at this sudden change and grunted in frustration. He thought about just giving this up but he'd be damned if he let a brat barely out of his diapers show him up. With that, the Jonin jumped up into the trees, easily keeping pace.

_Here's hoping he's not interested in chasing. _

_**I wouldn't bet on that. Keep going. **_

_Yes sensei….what…the?_

Naruto's body suddenly fell numb and he realized he couldn't move much anymore. The chakra shroud suddenly dissipated and he felt even weaker. The worst thing was that he was still fifty feet above ground and he was about to lose all control of his body. Desperate, he aimed a jump down from a limb for some branches running down a tree trunk that should slow his decent. On that cue, his entire body failed and he spun forward in a free fall. He grunted as his back hit the first branch but it did the job. It slowed him down before he hit the next one and it repeated several times before a battered Naruto landed on his back with a soft thud on the earth. A grunt of pain escaped his mouth.

_Ow…so that's what happens when I use the chakra too much. That's very helpful to know and I'll be filing that away for future reference. _

_**No need for the sarcasm. I'll work on healing your body as fast as I can. It'll be about five minutes before you can move well enough though. Now we just have to hope that Kumo doesn't show up.**_

The Kumo Jonin landed with a soft thump on the ground some distance away from Naruto with a victorious smile spreading across his face.

_You just had to jinx it, damn fox._

_**It's been nice working with you on this short partnership, damn brat.**_

"It looks like whatever you did left you weak in the end. I lost my chance at getting back into Kumo, but at least I'll have my revenge," the Jonin chuckled as he brandished his kunai.

The boy just glared at him, not willing to beg for his life and waited for his death to come. What he didn't expect was to hear a soft thunk and a yelp of pain. There was a shuriken sticking deep into the Jonin's forearm, forcing him to drop the kunai. Gasping, the Jonin looked up to see where the shuriken came from and widened his eyes in shock.

Naruto turned his head with some effort to see what got the Jonin so scared. Peering into the light of the setting sun, he noticed the sunlight seem to be fading slowly…as if something was blotting it out. Naruto was flabbergasted to see it was hundred thousands of shurikens flying through the air that blotted out the sun. In a whistling roar all the shuriken passed over his immobile body to strike the Jonin, who had his arms up in front of his face, all over the body. The rest of the shurikens landed in a wide area around the Jonin.

Naruto had to wince upon seeing the Jonin covered from head to toe with shurikens on every inch of his body. The Jonin let his defending arms down to show an intact face but with blood running freely out of his mouth. After letting out a bloody cough he slowly fell backward into a sitting position against a tree. Most of the shurikens puffed into a large cloud of smoke. After it cleared, he saw there were only three real shurikens sticking into the man's body, but the rest still left behind real holes as evidenced by the ground underneath getting soaked quickly with dark red fluid.

Naruto looked back toward where the shurikens came from to see a lone black figure with two long ribbons of cloth whipping behind the figure's head in the wind. A long bo staff was seen in his hand. Naruto was relieved when the figure got closer to reveal Sarutobi Hiruzen in full combat outfit, with a concerned expression on his face as he looked at the immobile boy.

"Naruto-kun, are you okay?"

"Fox is fixing me up. I'll be up and running in a little. You find Hanabi-chan?"

"Yes. Your clones are keeping her busy nearby. She does not need to see this. You should look away now if you do not want to see the rest of this," Sarutobi hardened his gaze and voice as he looked over at the barely conscious Kumo Jonin. He walked over to the body, brandishing his bo staff slightly. Naruto decided to watch this.

"Aise Mugen, The Living Lighting, also a disgraced ex-Jonin of Kumogakure. You have been recently listed in the Bingo Book as an A-rank Missing Nin for crimes committed within your former village, with a specific request from the Raikage himself to kill you on sight. What are your final words before I execute you on this spot?"

Mugen let out a wet cough as more blood spilled out of his mouth. He barely shrugged.

"What….can…I say? It's been…a…good life."

In the next instant, there was a sharp and thunderous whoosh of air as the God of Shinobi sliced the Kumo Jonin's head off with a simple flick of his wrist holding the bo staff. The head thumped and rolled across the forest floor as the body did not expel too much blood because the blood pressure had already dropped from the many shuriken wounds.

_Holy…Jiji-san just made a clean cut with a freakin' bo staff! _

_**No surprise there, his clan has always been known for its mastery of the staff. **_

Sarutobi sealed his staff into a seal on his wrist as he used hand seals and inhaled a large amount of air.

"**Katon: Great Fireball!" **the Hokage whispered before expelling hot flames, engulfing the headless body until it turned into ashes. Taking out a scroll, he walked over and knelled next to the severed head. Naruto grimaced at the grisly sight as the Hokage laid a scroll next to the head and slapped a hand on a seal array. In a puff of smoke, the head had been sealed into the scroll.

"Since you took down three C-ranked missing-nins and assisted in taking down an A-ranked one, I suspect you will see a much fatter envelope in the office lockbox on your next allowance day. You just won't be credited since you are not a shinobi yet, so I hope you don't mind. I suggest saving that for your eventual sabers," the Third said with a gentle smile. Naruto had to grin at some good fortune coming out of a long day of shitty luck. A moment later, some feelings finally returned to Naruto's body and he was able to get up and walk under his own power. Sarutobi and Naruto walked some distance through the forest before a loud voice shook the air.

"ONII-CHAN!"

"OOF!"

A small black blur zoomed out of some foliage to plow into Naruto's stomach. He fell backward onto the ground with Hanabi hugging him as tight as she could around his stomach, crying out loud.

"You have no idea how scared I was for you! Don't ever force me to leave you to your death again! I can't take that! I can't take telling Nee-chan you died! Please don't ever make me do that!"

She continued to ramble and sob as she shook her head against his stomach. Naruto allowed a gentle smile as he softly patted her back. The Hokage calmly stood aside and allowed the two to have their moment. After a few minutes of crying, the excitement and the emotional turmoil of the attempted kidnapping caught up with Hanabi and she quickly fell asleep in Naruto's arms. Hoisting her sleeping form onto his back and draping his orange jacket over her, he and Sarutobi started making their way back to Konoha.

**Two Hours Later approaching the Main Gate**

"…And that's why the fox and I think there may be a breach in Konoha's defenses. Just thought I'd tell you my opinion," Naruto explained. Sarutobi nodded grimly. He had some suspicions and this incident only served to fuel that. He will have to investigate deeply for this traitor. He then let out a loud yawn and a stretch.

"Whew…I'm getting so old that I need to give my old bones some rest after this light stroll in the forest," Sarutobi grumbled as he thumped a fist against his lower back as he and Naruto walked up to the gate in the darkness. Naruto looked over with a deadpanned expression.

"You just sliced a man's head off with a flick of your wrist using a friggin' bo staff and you're complaining about being old?"

"That was impressive to you? It's child's play to me," Sarutobi spoke with feigned haughtiness. Naruto chuckled before turning serious.

"So that was a glimpse of what it's like to be a shinobi outside this gate."

The Hokage adopted his serious look as he looked down at his surrogate grandson.

"How does it feel, Naruto-kun?"

The blonde raised one of his hands to stare at the palm as he repeatedly flexed it.

"I killed that big man brutally and mercilessly. I could hear every single piece of his skull crackling under my chakra claw's grip and I could hear the loud pop of his spine snapping in two against that tree. All I could think of was to get Hanabi-chan away from that man in the quickest and most efficient way, but I still took a life in the process. The other two died as a result of my actions too. I'm not going to enjoy killing, that's for sure."

The Hokage remained silent.

"But seeing Hanabi-chan so happy to have been saved took a lot of that emotion away. I can honestly believe I will do whatever I have to keep innocent and precious people safe from harm and be happy they were okay because of me. So I'm still not changing my mind about being a Konoha nin."

Sarutobi nodded with a gentle smile.

"As long as you keep that in mind, I think you will be a fine shinobi, Naruto-kun. After seeing what you did to save this young child, I have no doubt you can handle yourself. Looks like you have a welcoming committee."

Naruto turned his head to see Hiashi and Hinata standing at the gatehouse as if they never left the spot when Naruto ran off after Hanabi. The two Hyuugas finally glimpsed Naruto and Sarutobi approaching. They noticed Hanabi sleeping safe and sound on Naruto's back. Hinata suddenly sprinted up to Naruto with a huge smile and tears flowing down her cheeks as she hugged him for all he was worth, careful not to jolt the sleeping Hanabi off him. A relieved Hiashi walked up to Naruto and bowed to him deeply.

"It seems once again we fall further into our debt of gratitude to you, Naruto-san."

Naruto just chuckled.

"To be honest, Hiashi-sama, I'd be happy if Hyuuga girls would stop getting kidnapped around me. We'd be even on that," he said with a foxy smirk. Hinata blushed and felt a little admonished upon being reminded of her own kidnapping. Sarutobi chuckled at Hinata's reaction and Hiashi nodded with an amused smirk.

**Three Days Later in Sunagakure**

Temari finally arrived back at the Sabaku mansion, letting herself in. One could tell her eyes were a little red and puffy from some crying she did on the trip back here. Walking by the living room, she noticed Gaara sitting at the same bay window as before. She felt a shiver down her back and was about to leave him in silence without any acknowledgement. However, for some reason, she felt compelled to say this.

"I'm back…Gaara." She whispered before continuing on past the doorway to the living room. If she had remained there for a few more seconds, she might have imagined it when Gaara whispered, "Welcome back."

Walking by Kankuro's room, she lightly tapped on the door as she stepped past and called out nonchalantly.

"I'm back."

She would have continued on if she wasn't stopped by the sound of Kankuro getting up and walking to the door to open it slightly. She looked around to see her brother's surprisingly unpainted face sticking out through the opening.

"Nee-san..." he trailed off as he looked down slightly. Temari remained patient.

"...thank you."

Temari raised an eyebrow.

"..For trying to protect me from Gaara. I heard."

He then closed the door before Temari could reply. After staring at the door for a moment, she allowed a small grin as she continued to her room.

Arriving in her room, she flopped down on her bed and stared up at the ceiling. She went over what she saw in Konohagakure. She realized now she fucked up big time. She missed a chance to make friends with someone who could understand some of her pain, and possibly help Gaara with his own issues as well. She knew the fault lay completely with her as she let her trauma overtake her so easily. Letting a small tear sting one of her eyes, she wiped it away before she risked breaking down into another crying fit.

Sitting up, she looked over at her collection of knitted dolls on her dresser. Getting up, she removed her new weasel doll from her pouch and gently propped it up against the rest of the dolls, the collection growing by one. She smiled again at the memory of the kind and goofy boy in the orange jumpsuit. She sat down at her desk chair and proceeded to take out her knitting needles. Searching through a neat arraignment of yarns in the nearby chest, she found what she was looking for, a bright orange ball of yarn.

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**I hope you enjoyed this chapter. I especially liked how Temari turned out in her meeting with Naruto and it was thanks to LoverofLemons that we could flesh her character out a bit more than I expected to in this one chapter. Be sure to leave any review if you have any thing on your mind about how this story is going. **


	9. Realizations

**Before we start, I would like to inform you that, like I mentioned on my profile, I made some improvements to Chapter 8 a few days ago. Nothing important has been changed, but the changes are significant enough that I had to mention it. The major change was that I focused on some extra dialogues between Kurama and Naruto in the forest. The rest of the refinements and changes are sprinkled all over the chapter. It's not that the chapter was bad…I just wanted to make it better when all the extra bits suddenly popped up in my head.**

**Anyway, on to Chapter 9. I hope you'll enjoy it. Thanks goes to LoverofLemon for his continued beta-reading help.**

**And please be sure to leave reviews when you can and thank you for your time reading this.**

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**WARNING: This story will contain mature language, sexual themes, and graphic depictions of violence and gore.**

**DISCLAIMER: I do not own Naruto or any of its characters.**

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**Chapter 9: ****Realizations**

**Back to the Night After the Kidnapping Attempt-Hyuuga Compound**

"Thank you…." Hinata whispered with a serene expression while she slowly combed through Hanabi's long and silky black hair with her left hand. The younger Hyuuga slightly curled up further into a ball as she breathed gently while she slept, resting her head on her older sister's lap like it was a pillow. The two girls were on the living room couch and Naruto was sitting in one of the big and fluffy chairs across from the girls.

"You've already thanked me hundreds of times this night, Hinata-chan." the boy quietly teased with an amused smile, not at all irritated with the girl's constant gratitude.

"Yes, but she's my precious little sister and she's one of the few reminders I have left of our mother. I would be crushed if we did lose her…" Hinata trailed off as she ran her hand gently through Hanabi's hair again. The little Hyuuga looked like she would start purring any moment. Naruto felt a twinge in his chest as he remembered Hinata tearfully reminiscing about her deceased mother when she decided to open up about that not too long ago. He knew she would not have been able to recover from this if he had failed.

"Ano…Naruto-kun…Father told me some details about your…" Hinata trailed off, as she seemed to think about what would be an appropriate word. Naruto knew immediately she was talking about Kurama.

"My tenant, you mean."

Hinata flinched and slowly nodded as if she seemed uncomfortable about bringing this up.

"I don't mind answering any question you may have about my situation." Naruto headed off her growing nervousness over this subject. She seemed to visibly relax at her friend's words.

"Ano… was the Kyuubi the one who taught you all you learned lately?" Hinata quickly got out. Naruto widened his eyes in surprise.

"That's correct, but I'm surprised you figured that out."

"Well, no matter how hard I tried, I could never seem to find this "Sensei" you keep mentioning, and I saw the way you were secretive whenever I asked about this person. It wasn't hard to figure out after you had to reveal everything tonight."

_Not everything yet. Sorry, but my parentage will have to wait for another day._

"That's pretty perceptive of you. Anything else?"

"Ano…I would like to say something before we continue. Are you able to talk with the Kyuubi?" Hinata inquired nervously. Naruto nodded.

"I would like for you to relay to the Kyuubi that I want to sincerely express my gratitude for training you up until now. Otherwise, who knows if my little sister could have been saved?" Hinata looked directly into Naruto's eyes, her lavender-tinted eyes never wavering.

_**I appreciate the gratitude, little girl.**_ Kurama mumbled slightly as she was lazily napping on a soft patch of grass in Naruto's mindscape.

"She says you're welcome," Naruto relayed the message. Hinata smiled happily and nodded.

"Does anyone else know about your tenant?"

"Pretty much anyone that's not around our age. Only Jiji-san and a few high-ranking shinobi know the more intimate details, including the fact that I'm getting lessons from the fox. The rest just know she was sealed into me."

"Ano..why were we not allowed to know?"

"Like Jiji-san said, he made a law forbidding the villagers from talking about it so they wouldn't pass the information down to my generation and younger with hopes that I might have a somewhat normal childhood growing up. Aside from my few friends, it's not working out well since everyone can just warn their children to avoid me."

Hinata frowned.

"I do not like that. Everyone should be able to see you for who you truly are: a kind and courageous person. Even the Kyuubi doesn't sound as evil as the stories made her out to be."

"I'm not trying to rationalize this, but they lost a lot of people that night, including the Yondaime Hokage. It was easier for them to think I'm the Kyuubi reincarnated and take it out on me when they had nothing else to vent at. It's slowly going away each day, though. Lately a good portion of the shinobi force don't seem to mind me, and it's just the civilians who won't move past this."

"Still, I refuse to accept them trying to hurt you, Naruto-kun." Hinata glowered at her memories of the villagers cursing and glaring at him whenever they went out on walks.

"Hinata-chan, I want you to promise me something." Naruto said almost sternly to his friend. Hinata narrowed her eyes a little, as she could guess what this was.

"You need to let this go. Act the same as you always did while with me out in the village and leave them alone, ok?"

"But…"

"You let your anger overtake you and tried to attack Temari-san when she reacted badly. If you hadn't been stopped by Hiashi-sama, you may have been hurt if the Suna escorts had retaliated against you for harming the Kazekage's daughter." Naruto said bluntly with a hard look, making Hinata shrink under his gaze as she realized what she nearly did.

"I…tried to hit... a kage's daughter?"

"That's why I want you to just leave this alone. Just be happy with the fact that I am happy with the friends I already have and I don't need the entire village's approval, just the few of you. There is no need to force other people into accepting that I'm not really the Kyuubi. They will learn that on their own."

"Ok…I promise. I'm sorry." Hinata mumbled, clearly shaken by the fact she could have caused an international incident just because of her rage.

"It's no big deal. Actually, it made me a little happy you would react like that. Just be careful next time." Naruto said with a smile. Hinata, still feeling a little ashamed, could only nod. After a long moment of silence, she moved her gaze down to her sleeping sister, looking a little shy about what she was going to say.

"Naruto-kun...w-would it be ok i-if you sit by me…and l-let me r-rest my head on y-you?" she mumbled, hating her stuttering at a time like this. Naruto raised his eyebrows at her request.

"I don't mind, but why? You'd just fall asleep and I'm sure your dad is probably expecting me to head home soon," Naruto cocked his head slightly in confusion.

"Father w-would be fine with you s-staying the night and it's already early morning. I almost lost my little sister and right now I don't feel like it's safe. But…having y-you n-near m-me makes me feel safe and calm. I-is it okay?"

Naruto took a moment to think and then shrugged as he stood up from the chair.

"Sure if that's what you'd like, Hinata-chan. I'm pretty sure your dad or Jiji-san are safer to be around, though, since they're stronger." he spoke as he moved to the couch, flopped down next to Hinata's right, and put his left arm up around her shoulders to make it more comfortable for her. It only took Hinata a few seconds of hesitating before she carefully rested her head on his chest and snuggled up with a big grin.

_No…Naruto-kun, you're a million times better than Father or Hokage-sama. I can't imagine feeling this safe and warm with any other person._

Hinata enjoyed Naruto's slow heartbeat and the rising of his chest with each breath while she continued to absent-mindedly comb through Hanabi's hair. It was not long before she noticed Naruto's heartbeat and breathing were slowing down and becoming even.

_He's falling asleep?_

Hinata carefully removed her head a little so she could look up to see Naruto resting his head against the sofa's back cushion and his eyes were closed. Hinata smiled a little mischievously and slowly leaned in to leave a very slight peck on his left cheek. She blushed a little and giggled quietly when Naruto mumbled a little and his cheeks became a little pink. The Hyuuga heiress slowly returned her head to his chest and closed her eyes shortly after.

A while later, Hyuuga Hiashi quietly stepped into the living room, finally done with the mess caused by his youngest daughter's attempted kidnapping. He noticed the slumbering trio on the sofa and allowed a genuine smile at their gentle expressions. He picked up two blankets nearby and carefully draped one over Hanabi and the other over the sleeping couple.

_Hinata finally convinced you to stay the night, it seems. I never set up any rule about that and yet you were too polite to notice I did not care. I am a little envious of you though, Naruto-san. Hinata never displayed that kind of expression sleeping near me. _Hiashi thought as he glanced at his daughter's sleeping face, one that showed she knew no harm would ever come to her and her sister as long as Naruto was nearby. He smiled again and quietly stepped away to retire to his bedroom.

**The Next Morning in Hokage's Office**

"This scroll contains all the information Inochi-san gathered from the Kumo missing nin's brain. He was able to collect some valuable information about some of the techniques this nin used. We could not find anything important about Kumogakure that our spies' reports did not cover, however." ANBU Commander Kakashi drawled as he laid a scroll on the desk across from the Third Hokage, who nodded in understanding. The Third was happy that Yamanaka Inochi had an ability to scan through a deceased person's brain as long the neural pathways weren't damaged or did not deteriorate too much yet.

"And does he know anything about the breach in our barrier?"

"Unfortunately, he really was just a client in this one. He only requested and paid the Kiri missing-nins to get him a pure Hyuuga member. Only they knew the way in."

The Hokage sighed in frustration at that.

"And we cannot recover anything from the other nins' brains?"

"No, Naruto really did a number on the ones he killed and their brains were too damaged. He did try to leave the third, the leader, alive for us to interrogate but the kunai from the Kumo nin penetrated too far into his brain. I suspect rumors that other villages trained their nin to aim for the heads of captives or informants with risky information that the Yamanaka could exploit are becoming more legitimate each day."

Sarutobi frowned at that. There had been a small decline in information they were able to gather from dead bodies because of an increase in head traumas. He hoped there wasn't a deliberate cause but this latest incident was too hard to ignore.

"Keep up the investigation on this traitor. We need to figure out where they came in and left and we should be able to follow the trail after that."

"And what do we do about the remains?"

"Go ahead and collect the bounties from everyone and give the money to me. Too bad we won't see the Raikage's reaction. You may go, Commander."

Kakashi could be seen visibly grinning behind his facemask. It was a good thing for any village that a missing nin was returned quickly…however, not too quickly. It was also a blow to any village's pride if one of its top missing nin came back in a scroll a few weeks after being listed in the Bingo Book. That may imply to the other villages that this supposedly powerful nin was actually weak and the village trained weak shinobi.

Kakashi bowed his head and vanished in a poof of smoke with a shunshin. A moment later, Naruto knocked on and entered through the office door.

"Good morning, Jiji-san!" Naruto called out as he stepped up to the desk. The Third smiled at his surrogate grandson's arrival.

"Good morning, Naruto-kun. Good timing since I was about to send for you."

"Oh, want me to go over exactly what happened yesterday? I figured you'd call me for that."

The Third nodded and prepared a scroll and pen before gesturing for the boy to begin. The blonde recounted everything that happened.

**Thirty Minutes Later…**

"…and that's when you came in and kicked ass!" the boy finished with a flourish. The Hokage chuckled as he put down the pen.

"You did great. There were moments where you faced death and a normal child your age would have frozen up and been unable to do anything, yet you kept finding ways out of the situations you were in. I am sorry we had to let you put yourself in danger like that. If only we were more prepared… " the Hokage trailed off with his gaze slightly downcast.

"Don't worry, Jiji-san. If I didn't think I could do it, I wouldn't have done anything."

Sarutobi smiled and nodded at his confident reassurance. He remembered something.

"How did Lady Hinata take the revelation about your true nature?"

"She was perfectly fine with it. She didn't care because she knows I really am Naruto, not the fox."

"Good. This time your transformation didn't scare the villagers because the detection barrier also protects against intrusion of foreign chakra in case someone attempted a mass genjutsu on the whole village. It was a bonus it blocked out the Kyuubi's chakra as well. I just am sorry I could not prevent the Suna people from seeing your power since we were in a hurry. Even though they are our ally, revealing yourself like that could cause some issues later down the road."

Sarutobi raised his eyebrow at Naruto's foxy smirk.

"I doubt you'll be too worried about that. We have something against them as well. With some information from Temari-san, the fox was able to connect the dots about who's possibly Suna's jinchuriki."

"I would call that an even trade-off. May I hear your guess on who this person may be?"

Naruto looked slightly torn, as he seemed to think for a moment.

"Before that, Temari-san told me this in confidence and I am betraying her trust by revealing this. I just hope someone here won't use the information for bad things."

The Third's eyes flashed in anger at someone who _would_ do this; his old teammate and warmonger, Danzo. He would be damned if he let this information find its way to that man.

"Actually, you know what, Naruto-kun? Keep that to yourself. I do not feel confident about keeping that information from people who would use it for their own gains. Just promise me that if you meet this person or know he's nearby, especially in this village, you will inform me or someone you trust right away. We will take some measures at that time then."

Naruto looked visibly relieved, happy he wouldn't have to choose between his loyalty to his village and his loyalty to a person who told him her secrets. The Hokage smiled as he leaned back in his chair.

"What do you intend to do with your training for this year until the next break?"

Naruto furrowed his eyebrows in thought for a moment.

"The fox is going to teach me elemental jutsu. She said she'll start me off on nature manipulation training soon."

"Do you know what nature your chakra could be aside from the fire affinity you said you're getting from the Kyuubi's chakra?"

Naruto shook his head. Knowing how to find out, the Hokage reached into a drawer in his desk and took out a piece of paper.

"This is a chakra paper. If you channel your chakra into it, it will tell you what your primary affinity is and possibly one or more secondaries." the Third explained as he reached across the desk to hand the paper to the boy. Naruto took it and immediately started channeling his chakra into the paper.

The paper sliced itself in half with a sharp sound and then the two pieces burst into somewhat intense flames. It surprised Naruto into dropping the pieces and they burned to ashes long before they even reached the floor. The Hokage smiled pleasantly at this.

"It looks like fire and wind are both your primary affinities. Neither seems to be dominant over the other within you so you will have high mastery of both fire and wind natures. This is a nice discovery since both elements are opposite of the other and it's very rare for anyone to have these two elements together." Sarutobi smiled as he watched Naruto beam with pride.

"We have plenty of expertise with fire jutsu since that's the primary element of this village but unfortunately we don't have much information on wind jutsu. There are only two people in this village with wind natures. One of them is my son, Asuma, and he may be able to help you when he eventually returns from his tour of duty with The Twelve Guardians."

"Who's the other?" Naruto innocently asked before he was surprised by a dark frown on his surrogate grandfather's face.

"Naruto-kun, if someone comes to you out of nowhere and offers to teach you wind jutsu among other techniques, stall for time and come to me. I do not want you to associate with the second person. His name is Danzo and that is all you need to know to stay away from him."

Naruto could not help but nod nervously under the Hokage's hardened gaze. He rarely saw him serious like this. This Danzo must be bad news then.

_**No doubt the type of person that would assassinate another village's jinchuriki for his own gains. That's probably why this old fart had you keep the identity of Shukaku's host to yourself. Your father was very wary of Danzo and he spoke ill of him when he confided in your mother, like how he kept calling for the Hachibi's host to be secretly eliminated ever since his power was seen during the Third War. He's apparently someone that would do things behind the scene to weaken other villages for the 'the betterment of Konoha'.**_

_Thanks for the information, sensei._

"I'll keep that in mind, Jiji-san."

The Hokage nodded, glad he got his point across.

"I have kept you here too long. I will let you get back to your business and have a good day, Naruto-kun."

Naruto smiled and waved as he left the office. As he walked down the stairs, he seemed deep in thought.

_I don't suppose you know wind jutsu?_

_**Your father was wind-natured too. I have seem him use several jutsu in his spars with your mother. I may be able to help you recreate them from the hand seals I have seen, but beyond that…you will have to find a way of obtaining more wind jutsu. Despite the lack of information, this is a very good coincidence.**_

_What do you mean?_

_**Wind nature is perfect for anyone who uses bladed weapons. If you were able to find or create sabers that channel chakra, you will be able to make the sabers sharper and more durable. You may also be to 'extend' the blades with chakra or even generate sharp blades of wind to cut people down from a distance.**_

_That's pretty awesome! But…I find it strange._

_**What's that?**_

_The more abilities I find out about myself, the more it feels like I'm turning into a deadly force of nature._

_**If that's the case, then it's a perfect match for the meaning of your name. You did want to be the strongest shinobi around, so I say take the bad with the good. You aren't going to win by talking to your opponents.**_

_Pfft…like I would be stupid enough to try that._

**Two Weeks Later in A Small Village Outside of Konoha**

"You want to what?" a disguised Iwa shinobi asked incredulously as he stared daggers at another disguised person sitting across from him. They were sitting in a corner in a small and rowdy bar within the village.

"Don't make me repeat myself. I said I'm closing everything down. People in Konoha are getting too close to my trail. I can't risk allowing any more passage into the village while this is going on. They're not stupid and I will be caught if I keep this up," the disguised Konoha shinobi fidgeted nervously as he glanced around the bar room for any possible tail.

"You fuckin' coward! This is the only easy way we can get into that damn tree-hugging village and you're denying me that! Just because they're flailing around in the dark for someone to pin this on?" the Iwa nin hissed harshly.

"I don't care. I can feel they're too close. Someone must have clued them in and now they're starting to focus their attention on the Chunin patrols, which is where I am now. I'm sorry but tell everyone else I'm not going to do any more favors for anyone. Goodbye." the Konoha nin quickly stood up to leave. The Iwa stared after him with burning rage.

_Fuckin' cocksucker. Now I have to go back to Iwa and tell them I failed to get in. At least I won't have to waste my time with this mission. I doubt I would have found anything about a possible offspring of that blond monster, anyway._

Outside, the disguised nin slowly made his way back to Konoha, deep in thought.

_I'll have to seal up the secret tunnel and make sure it looks like it hasn't been used in forever if someone did come across it. For now, I'll lay low and take up a second job then quit the patrols a few months later saying I've found my "dream job"._

**Some Time Later in Naruto's Mindscape**

Kurama looked over a huge crowd of Naruto clones while they seemed to be concentrating on one leaf each in their hands. She walked slowly among them, her footsteps thundering among the clones who were unfazed by a huge fox towering over them. Her red eyes eventually focused on a lone Naruto as he was going through some katas he learned with a saber in each hand. She admired the beautiful display of the sabers flashing and cutting through the air as Naruto forcefully and passionately went through the katas he learned. She walked up to the lone Naruto, her eyes still trained on him as she slowly circled him several times, checking him out from every angle before stopping to sit on her haunches directly in front of him.

A few more minutes of practicing passed before Naruto finally stopped and let out a tired sigh. He threw the sabers up into the air before they disappeared in wisps of smoke; they were obviously apparitions. He looked up at the fox with a tired grin.

**"I don't see any issue with your kata. Good job, Naruto. How is the nature manipulation going?"**

"The fire group's coming along further than the wind group. I think I might be able to burn the leaf now."

**"Dispel the group slowly then try it for me. If you succeed, I'll move the fire group on to the next level."**

The boy complied quickly, dispelling the fire group in tens. A few minutes later, he grabbed a leaf and held it up as he concentrated on it. The leaf burned completely in almost an instant. He let out an excited laugh while Kurama looked on with a satisfied grin.

**"Very good. For the next level, you will have your clones burn this…" **She said as she got up to walk over to a gigantic tree, one that positively dwarfed Naruto, at the nearby tree line into the large forest beyond. She raised a tail high above the rest of her tails then twitched her body a little to get her tail in motion. The tail whipped out in a near invisible blur at the trunk of the tree and Naruto was shocked to hear a sharp cutting sound. For a moment, nothing happened until the tree trunk suddenly crackled as it started to tilt, straining under the shift in weight. The tree fell in what seemed like slow motion and landed with a thunderous crash. It surprised the group of clones into stopping their training to watch in awe.

**"…large tree. You will pass when your clones are able to burn a tree completely in under a minute."**

"Wow…sounds real easy, sensei." Naruto grumbled as he swatted away at the dust that the fallen tree kicked up then created a large group of clones to work on the tree.

**"Naruto, it's important you have total mastery manipulating fire and wind, especially since they're the primary affinities. You need to be able to switch between the two on the fly. The more you push yourself on the nature manipulation training, the easier it will be for you to switch between them."**

Naruto nodded tiredly before looking over at the wind group.

"Looks like they're about there too. It won't be too long before I can cut a leaf."

**"Speaking of the clones, this gives me an idea for when you learn the jutsu. You have a built-in method for easily using combination jutsu."**

"Really? That'd be awesome! What would I have to do, sensei?"

**"Sometimes you can be a little dense. The idea's right there in front of you,"** the fox said with a sweat drop.

"What do you….oh…I got it now! I can do wind while a clone does fire, and vice-versa." Naruto murmured as he smacked his forehead.

**"Or have two clones do the collaboration for you while you do something else. Many great tactics can be devised from this the more you learn different jutsu."**

"Great. What do I have to do for the next level of wind manipulation training?"

**"You'll have to create a large waterfall in this mindscape…and have your clones try to split it in two."**

"Are you fooling with me? That's impossible!"

**"Not according to your father. He did it when he trained his wind chakra. Dispel your wind group and cut a leaf. In the meantime, we'll create a giant waterfall for you to practice on. Let's get to it!" **Kurama ordered, with visible glee in her eyes at tormenting her container some more. Naruto sighed in defeat and mumbled something about "slave-driver fox".

**Some Time Later During the Second Academy Year**

Nine-year-old Naruto grunted as he landed on the dusty ground on his backside, nursing his just-punched cheek. He winced as he tried to block out the screeching of the girls surrounding them.

"Sasuke-kun! You're so great!"

"Yeah! Put that jerk in his place!"

"You're the only one in the class who can beat him, Sasuke-kun!"

The girls among the crowd surrounding Naruto and Sasuke cheered as the raven-haired boy stood victorious over the blonde, an infuriating cocky smile plastered across his face. Naruto found that irritating and wished he could actually go all-out against him. That would teach the Uchiha and these idiots fawning over him.

_**Patience, Naruto. You know why we're holding back here. The teachers and the imbeciles on your village's council will scream bloody murder if you harm a single hair on this boy. You do remember what happened last time you hit him?**_

Naruto growled silently as he remembered losing like usual that time but still landed a solid hit on Sasuke just because he felt like it. He was hauled off to stand before the civilian council and he grew angrier each time these morons opened their mouth to call for his execution because he was 'growing as strong' as their precious Sasuke. He was grateful when the Hokage crashed the meeting and made the entire civilian council empty their bowels and bladders before fainting under his massive killing intent. Apparently the council called this meeting without his permission so he had them all hauled off for a week alone with Ibiki to 'ask' if they were harboring any traitorous tendencies by blatantly undermining the Hokage's authority.

Naruto sighed as he got up to dust himself off and listened to the instructor enthusiastically call Sasuke the winner like usual and many girls flocked around him while he walked off arrogantly. The crowd dissipated for the day. He turned to walk in the opposite direction only to find himself face-to-face with Hinata's glare. He almost groaned since he knew this was going to happen eventually. Each time he 'lost' to Sasuke, he could tell Hinata was growing more unhappy and frustrated, as she had to listen to nearly the entire class fawn over Sasuke and not giving her friend any praise that she thought he should have. He couldn't blame her since she had seen what he was truly capable of.

"Hinata-chan, don't say anything. Just be happy knowing I can kick this guy's ass a thousand different ways if I wanted to. I just don't need the attention." Naruto whispered as he glanced worriedly at Sasuke's group, making sure they were not overheard.

"I am tired of seeing you like that! I know you have to hold back but I cannot stand seeing that pompous Uchiha standing over you as if it was his divine right! At least just make him work for it. You did say Hokage-sama punished those who are on the council so they would not do anything now." Hinata whispered back a little too loudly, her lavender eyes showing irritation.

"Geez, and you were supposed to be somewhat of a pacifist compared to me." Naruto teased with a smirk. Hinata didn't appreciate the teasing and puffed her cheeks cutely.

"What did you say, Hyuuga?"

The couple jumped at the new voice's intrusion and looked over to see Sasuke standing some distance away, his face in a mild frown. The raven-haired boy grew more irritated when the confused two didn't respond right away. The girls around him grumbled at Hinata for being called out by "their Sasuke-kun".

"I asked you what you just said."

Surprisingly, before Naruto could retort, Hinata showed a defiant expression.

"Our private conversation is none of your business, Uchiha. Please leave us in peace and go back to entertaining your 'friends'." Hinata ground out with the perfect Hyuuga composure. Naruto could tell she really disliked Sasuke because she only acted like that toward those she considered detestable. The girls around Sasuke gasped and started to glare daggers at Hinata for telling off their Sasuke.

"I don't care. I expect an answer from you. You said this dobe here was holding back against me. What did you mean by that?"

"Oi, teme! She said to leave us alone. You should learn to listen to a lady's request." Naruto spoke up as he stepped in between Hinata and Sasuke. Hinata had to blush a little at Naruto defending her honor.

"Naruto! Don't get in Sasuke-kun's way!" Sakura screeched from next to Sasuke. Naruto winced and stuck a pinky finger into one of his ears.

"You know, just because we're outside does not mean you get to use your outside voice, you banshee!"

Sakura sputtered at the insult, too surprised to reply.

"Enough of this! Hyuuga, you will explain now!" Sasuke growled as he reached out for Hinata's arm. Before she could prepare to defend herself, she was surprised to see Sasuke's hand stopped by Naruto quickly grabbing the wrist. Sasuke was just as surprised.

"Oi…didn't I tell you to listen to a lady's request? I'll teach you a quick lesson." Naruto said coldly with his icy blue eyes focused on Sasuke's wide black eyes. Before Sasuke could register anything, he found himself rolling along the ground about twenty feet as Naruto slung him aside like discarded litter. Rolling to a stop, Sasuke gasped in pain and shock, not believing what just happened. All the girls were stunned into silence while Hinata was sporting a slight smile as she tried hard to keep her vindictive smile from spreading.

"Let's go, Hinata-chan, before we draw any more attention." Naruto quickly said as he stormed past everyone while gently dragging Hinata, who was simply too happy to be holding Naruto's hand.

"Wait, dobe! Fight me!" Sasuke snarled as he slowly rose from the ground. Naruto stopped for a moment to look pityingly at Sasuke.

"I would love to put you in your place, but I can't do that."

"Why not? Afraid you'll lose to me even at your full power?" Sasuke said with a vicious smirk.

"No, the civilian council you got in your back pocket tried to punish me for leaving a cute little bruise on your cheek a few weeks ago. Now, I have to hold back even more against you because they'll froth at the mouth about the very real possibility of their precious elite Uchiha losing to a no-name orphan like me. Now excuse me, we have to go. Ja ne!" Naruto walked off with a blushing Hinata in tow. Sasuke was too stunned at what was said that he just tuned out the girls murmuring around him. He clenched his fist and gritted his teeth at this humiliation.

**A Few Weeks Later at the Hyuuga Compound**

Hiashi had mixed feelings; he was pleased but, at the same time, he was also irritated. The cause of this was happening in front of him as he sat outside on his rear porch overlooking the Main family's private training yard, watching his two daughters battle together against Naruto at the same time. Sipping from a cup of hot tea in his hands, he was glad that this boy's participation in the spars seemed to have made his daughters strive to improve themselves in long strides. On the other hand, he was irritated that, despite their improvements, they had not been able to land a single hit against him. The children were at this for fifteen minutes and Naruto only dodged while keeping his arms firmly crossed against his chest throughout the spar. Hanabi was frustrated and even Hinata was showing signs of losing her patience as they attacked Naruto in a flurry of punches and kicks in which Naruto effortlessly avoided.

Naruto dodged a high kick by crouching under Hinata's leg and Hanabi tried to capitalize by aiming a palm strike level with the blonde's face. He smirked before swaying his head to the left to allow the palm to barely graze across the top of his collarbone. He made an attack of his own for the first time in this spar as he shot both arms outward toward the girls. His left palm slammed against Hinata's hip while her leg was still up in air and the right palm struck against Hanabi's exposed side after she missed her attack. Both girls were knocked off their feet and landed roughly away from Naruto. He smiled before doing an impressive series of backward somersaults toward the rear porch before jumping and flipping over to land gently on the wooden surface next to Hiashi, who hadn't shown any reaction. Naruto bent down to pick up his own cup of tea to sip it as he watched the girls slowly get up from his attack.

"I am not sure what to make of your actions just now, Naruto-san," Hiashi spoke with a slight tinge of irritation at Naruto's perceived cockiness while he took a sip of his own tea.

"I've learned it's better to be a bit of a hard-ass while training with people, Hiashi-sama. It'll force people to understand their own weaknesses and work hard to improve themselves. You don't see these two giving up any time soon, right?" Naruto cheekily said as he indicated the two girls that recovered from Naruto's attack, dogged determination clear on their faces. Hiashi had to admit this boy had a natural ability to encourage and motivate anyone around him.

"Ok! I'm going on the attack! Be ready!" Naruto announced before he jumped off the porch and sprinted toward Hinata. He and the two girls immediately engaged in a flurry of punches and kicks. After a few minutes of dodging each other, Naruto started to force the girls back with well-timed counters that barely missed the girls only thanks to their eyes. The blonde then broke off the melee by suddenly jumping into a backward somersault away from the girls, surprising them into stopping for a second.

Upon landing, he dashed forward at Hinata, a hand raised for a strike. She gasped at the blonde's speed and instinctively struck out with a palm strike at his chest for a counter. Hanabi tried to intercept Naruto with a sliding leg sweep in his path but he surprised them both by jumping high into the air over their heads, easily avoiding their strikes. Landing behind Hinata, he swung around to throw a hard punch at her back. He was expecting her to dodge the attack easily since she could see him behind her with her eyes. He would follow up with a surprise leg sweep. However he was surprised when Hinata did dodge, but it was an instant too late. His fist grazed hard against her ribs when she could not completely get out of the way in time. He felt a little bad when he heard her cry out sharply in pain as she slumped to the ground, clutching at her side, but he noticed something odd and had to check it out.

Naruto stepped back out of the way of Hanabi's sneaky flying kick from his blind spot and she landed clumsily in front of Naruto, her back exposed to him for easy pickings. Deciding to test what he saw with Hinata, he carefully aimed a punch toward the left shoulder on her back. He was proven right when Hanabi dodged an instant too late as well and got the same nasty graze against her ribs. She cried out slightly in pain before slumping down next to the still-recovering Hinata. He frowned.

"Sorry about that, ladies. I'll give you two some time to recover. I have to talk with your dad." Naruto spoke with the frown still evident on his face. The girls looked curious about what was on the blonde's mind but nodded as they took their time recovering. He walked up next to Hiashi to pick up his teacup and took a sip. Hiashi remained silent but he seemed to know what Naruto was thinking.

"There is a weakness with your clan's Byakugan, Hiashi-sama." Naruto declared, as if this statement was the indisputable truth, before he set the cup down.

Hiashi raised an eyebrow for show.

"And…what, pray tell, would that be?"

"You already know. There's a missing chunk of the Byakugan's 360-degrees field of vision located on the left shoulder, just behind the heart. It seems to be the same in both girls so I assume the rest of the clan shares the same blind spot. It's not so big that a normal-sized fist can slip through the Byakugan's vision field completely but it'll cause everyone to react just a slight bit slower. If any enemies know this they will aim their projectiles at that particular spot. Aren't you worried about anyone finding out? If I could see it…"

"You saw it because you are very observant and not many outsiders get the chance to spar with the Hyuuga on a regular basis. As for our enemies, none of them survived long enough to figure it out apparently because we have gone this long without that weakness becoming widespread knowledge. Now, I trust you will keep this to yourself, Naruto-san." Hiashi spoke the last sentence with a small tension in his voice.

"You have nothing to worry about. This goes to the grave with me, Hiashi-sama." Naruto replied just as seriously. At this point, the girls had joined in and were shocked to see that Naruto had easily figured out the clan's secret weakness. Their respect for Naruto went up a little more.

"Good. As for you, Hinata and Hanabi, both of you combined barely managed a slight graze on Naruto-san. I have to admit I am a little disappointed in that, despite his growing talents. You will have to work hard to keep up with him and Neji-san." Hiashi spoke calmly as he sipped from his cup while the girls replied with a dejected "Yes."

"Actually, I noticed something about Hinata-chan that I think you should consider," Naruto pointed out while the girls took their seats next to him. Hinata turned her head toward the blonde in confusion.

"To be honest, Hanabi-chan is taking to the kata of the traditional Gentle Fist faster and easier than Hinata-chan is. At this rate, Hanabi-chan will easily overtake Hinata-chan in just two or three years."

Hinata cringed at Naruto's blunt observations. She had a feeling about that but for that to be brought out into the open with her father around made her nervous. She also felt a little hurt that Naruto believed that about her. Hanabi felt guilty because she knew if this kept up she could be made the clan's heiress and her beloved Nee-chan would get branded.

"I have seen all of this for a while now. I was going to have a discussion about that," Hiashi replied calmly but one could detect a small hint of sadness in his tone about his eldest daughter's situation. Hinata looked down.

"Ano…I am sorry, father. It seems the elders are right and I may not be qualified to take over your position in the future after all."

"Who said this doesn't make you qualified? We just have to figure out a specific work-around for you. The main difference between you and Hanabi-chan is that your body is much more flexible and limber compared to Hanabi-chan's more rigid structure, which is what the traditional kata of the Gentle Fist are made for. Your body is having some slight trouble staying rigid enough when it's so naturally flexible. This leads to problems with your more precise kata."

Hiashi nodded his head at the boy's assessment.

"Naruto-san is correct. Now that he has bought it up, I have been thinking about a solution for you to be able to realize your full potential instead of being restricted by the traditional kata. This will cause controversy with the elders but I believe you should branch out and create your own style of Gentle Fist that fits your more flexible body. I dare say if we can bring out your full potential with this, you may be able to match up with Neji-san in the future."

The girls were stunned that their father would dare defy the clan's rigid traditions for them. Hinata was almost brought to happy tears to hear about her father's belief that she could be as strong as her cousin in the future if she branched out. Naruto smiled brightly, impressed that Hiashi has already come up with some answers, before he noticed a worried look on Hanabi's face.

"What's wrong, Hanabi-chan?" Naruto inquired, directing everyone's attention to the young Hyuuga. She shifted uncomfortably.

"It still does not change the fact that one of us will still have to be branded eventually, Onii-chan."

Naruto frowned while Hinata wrapped an arm around her little sister to try to comfort her worries.

"That's true. No offense, Hiashi-sama, but your clan's tradition of using the Caged Bird seal is bullshit."

The girls flinched at the blonde's honesty with their father. Hiashi merely raised an eyebrow but did not say anything.

"I have been reading up on seals a little as a side hobby in my trips to the library and I can already tell any decent seal master will create a seal to protect your clan's Byakugan even better without pain of servitude, and the seal can be applied on every single Hyuuga member, even replacing the Caged Bird seal already on them."

Hiashi allowed a small smirk at this boy's growing knowledge with seals. It reminded him of his old friend, Minato.

"I understand your view on this. I have never liked using the seal. The only time I ever did use that was when I had to pry Neji-san off your broken and bruised body two years ago." Hiashi smirked inwardly at the blonde's grumbling over the memory of that.

"This seal ruined a great clan prodigy's chance at being recognized as such simply because I was born a few minutes before my brother. I believe it is time we change the way the clan works. The traditionalists in this clan would revolt at the mere mention of devising a new seal however, and I have to be careful about looking like I am upholding the laws as the head of this clan until that day comes."

Hiashi paused to take a sip of his tea.

"I plan on putting off the decision to choose between you two for the official position of heiress until when Hinata turns sixteen, which is the latest the clan laws will allow. At the very least the both of you will be able to avoid being branded for seven more years. It is my hope that someone will come up with a new seal before then and we may force the changes within this clan, ones that should have occurred long ago." Hiashi spoke as if he knew who that someone would be and even inclined slightly toward Naruto. Naruto picked up on this and suddenly felt a small pressure growing inside him.

"Y-yeah, let's make the most of the time limit." Naruto said with a nervous gulp. The girls did not pick up on the blonde's slight distress since they were busy being relieved that they still have at least seven years before they had to worry about being branded.

"For now, I think you should try again against Naruto-san. However, I wish to put a stake on this. If you manage to land a solid hit on him, he will stay for dinner and the night. If you do not, then, aside from seeing him at the Academy, he won't be visiting here for a month."

The effects were immediate as the two girls perked up, their eyes glimmering with determination as they could get a chance to sleep with their favorite "teddy bear". Hanabi grew even more determined because she did not want her Onii-chan to disappear for a month. Naruto cringed.

"Not the Jūken trap of horror!"

The two excited girls quickly got up to prepare to spar only to be surprised upon seeing that Naruto was already gone from his sitting position. They looked around to find him running away at speeds that would impress a Jounin. They ran off after him just as fast not letting this chance slip by, leaving behind a deviously smiling Hiashi.

Needless to say, Naruto stayed the night while being clutched tightly by the two Hyuuga girls when they found him cowering in the crawlspace under one of the Branch houses. It was determined that, in his terrified state, he had forgotten that Hyuuga could see through objects.

**Some Time Later at a Certain Dango Shop in Konoha**

Mitarashi Anko was sitting outside in the shop's patio feeling worn down as she was absent-mindedly picking her teeth with a used dango stick. She was feeling so lethargic about herself that, to the shop owner's shock, she didn't order as much dango as she usually did. After two and half years of being Chunin, she felt like nothing had changed for the better for her. Her fellow shinobi still treated her poorly, and the villagers still glared at her with hatred.

To make it worse, her sixteen-year old body had filled out so much she was already considered one of the most beautiful women in the village and the men were still going after her aggressively in an effort to be the first one to lay with her. Contrary to the wild rumors about her, she still was a virgin, and despite her growing habit of using her amazing body to distract men for her own humor or gains, she still refused to let one single man lay a hand on her intimately. Any man that tried would end up nearly beaten to death.

That was another thing she hated about being associated with Orochimaru. Some men believed she deserved to be treated like a whore just because she was _his_ former pupil and they grew angrier the longer she refused any advances. She was worried that eventually one day some men would snap and try everything they could. After all, how could they pass up a chance to make a beautiful woman like her into a whore that doesn't charge any money?

Anko shuddered at the thought. Despite using her 'assets' to tease men, either for fun or for spiting them, she found herself rather shy and scared about the idea of sex. She had to fight back embarrassed blushes at mere mentions of the words 'penis' and 'pussy', among others.

Anko looked forward to ending her tour of duty with the patrols next year and starting her assignment with Ibiki in the Torture and Intelligence Department. Now that she was going to remain in one place for a long period of time, she might be able to form better relationships with her co-workers when they got past their initial prejudices of her and realized she was not what the rumors had made her out to be. It would be a long process but she believed that was what she needed to move on beyond her relationships with Yugao and Kurenai and to maybe make more friends.

Anko was broken out of her thoughts when she saw a flash of golden hair pass by on the street bordering the patio. She smirked…she hadn't seen that brat in a while and maybe some quick company may get her out of her lethargic mood for a little while.

"Oi, gaki!"

Said gaki flinched as he stopped in his track and slowly looked behind him to see who would call out for him. Anko had to hold back a blush and a happy sigh at seeing these beautiful blue eyes and whiskers. Fighting off the blush, she waved her hand, beckoning for one Uzumaki Naruto to come sit with her. Seeing a beautiful purple-haired older girl waving him over, the blond looked confused for a minute as he turned around and walked closer before realization hit him.

"Oh, you're the onee-san that saved me from that guy two years ago!"

"Wow, has it been that long ago? You certainly have changed quite a bit since then. Please have a seat if you got some time."

Naruto grinned as he took a seat across from her at the small patio table. Anko had to wonder just what this brat was eating and doing to be able to get such a fine-tuned body like the one he had now. He was wearing a black tank top with orange loose shorts and the outfit showed off incredibly toned muscles everywhere. He was clearly training to be a shinobi and she could tell he's already developed well ahead of kids his age. Anko fought back a blush at the thought of him after he had matured some more.

"You're certainly not that weakling I had to save last time we met, gaki. It looks like you're training to be a shinobi in the future."

"Yup! Now I have a thousand different ways of kicking that man's ass all over the street! They're not going to be able to do anything to me now." Naruto exclaimed as he puffed his chest out in pride. Anko smirked.

"Who's your sensei? It's clear you're ahead of everyone your age by a long shot." Anko quizzed as she signaled the owner for another order of dango.

"Um…sorry, but that's classified. You're a Chunin, right?" he confirmed indicating the Chunin vest she was wearing over her tight white t-shirt and black mini-skirt. "Jiji…I mean the Hokage was strict about that."

Anko frowned. She had to admit she wondered just what was so special about this kid. Her roommate, Yugao, mentioned this blonde occasionally and she was secretive with some of the details about him.

While Anko was deep in thought, Naruto quietly observed the environment around the two. He was not surprised to see the usual glares, but what surprised him was that the glares didn't seem to be aimed at him exclusively. It did not take him long to realize some of the glares and whispers were directed at the girl sitting across from him. He could sense she did not have a reason to deserve the looks, same as him. She felt somehow similar to him in some ways.

_Is there anything you can sense off this onee-chan, sensei? Like if she's a Jinchuriki?_

_**I would be able to sense that even from here inside you, but I do not feel a familiar signature. She's not a host. However, there is a somewhat odd signature coming off her, as if there was something else piggybacking on her chakra. Beyond that, I cannot tell.**_

_Thanks. You're still a big help, sensei._

"Is something wrong, onee-san?" Naruto suddenly asked as he looked at her quizzically. Anko was jolted out of her thoughts.

"Anko."

"Hm?"

"Mitarashi Anko. That's my name. I don't like the onee-san thing."

"Oh! My name's Uzumaki Naruto. Nice to meet you, Anko-san." Naruto slightly bowed from his seat. Anko smiled mischievously.

"Sorry, but I'll still call you gaki. You look like one, and I know about your reputation as the village's prankster." Anko had to giggle at Naruto's pouting at being called gaki.

"Would you rather be called Naruto-chan? Or Naru-chan? You still look that much younger than me." she teased with a half-cocked smile. Naruto shot her an annoyed look.

"Gaki is fine." he grumbled. A moment later, the shop owner brought over a tray of dango and set it down in front of Anko, who was eyeing them hungrily. The owner looked over at Naruto, who flinched and expected to be glared at, before he bowed.

"Welcome to my shop. I have to thank you. You improved my favorite customer's mood. I was worried she was not feeling well."

Naruto put up a sheepish pose while Anko shot the owner a slightly annoyed look.

"Hehe...uh thanks?"

"Would you like to try something from this shop?"

"I'm sorry, owner-san. I just ate so I'm full. Thank you for the offer, though." Naruto politely bowed. The owner smiled and inclined his head before returning inside the shop.

"You ever had any dango before, gaki? It's the food of the gods!" Anko declared as she munched on her first stick. Naruto showed an affronted expression.

"Oi…that is not the food of the gods! Ramen is!"

_**Oh, Kami. Not this bullshit again.**_

_Hush, fox. This is an important matter!_

"How dare you, gaki? Ramen doesn't hold a candle to these magnificent spheres of deliciousness!"

"That's because you haven't tried the ramen from the Ichiraku, apparently! They make the best ramen in the entire elemental nations!"

"Fine! I don't normally give anyone even a single piece of my dango, but I will allow you to have a bite of this just so you understand just how much better than ramen this is!" Anko challenged as she held out a stick with one dango remaining on it.

"Hmph! If I don't like this, then you have to promise to come with me straight to Ichiraku Ramen Stand and try a bowl there!" Naruto shot back as he grabbed the stick. Anko frowned before she gave a reluctant nod. Naruto slowly put the dango into his mouth as Anko watched on intensely. He closed down on it.

"Hot!" the blonde yelled as he reflexively removed the dango but the stick slipped out of his grip. Both gasped as they watched the dango stick flip end-over-end in slow motion through the air to land some distance away on the street. They watched in stunned silence as a bird flew in and picked at it to try to lift it. Not being able to, they swore they saw a tick mark on the bird's head as it turned around to empty its bowels over the dango in retaliation. The two gaped as the bird flew off before seeing a pedestrian step on the dango and it stuck to the sole of one of his shiny-looking shoes.

"Oh damn it! These shoes were new!" the man cursed as he reached down to remove the dango and tossed it high into the air. Naruto and Anko's heads followed the dango as it went up in an arc toward the shop's rooftop. It landed and rolled down to the gutter right into a drainpipe leading down. The two listened to some slight rattling as the dango bounced down the pipe before popping out into an alleyway next to the shop. It rolled up to an overflowing garbage can and tapped against it. The very slight impact was enough to cause some of the disgusting garbage to ooze over the edge of the can and land on the dango in a small pile. On that cue, a huge mass of rats appeared from every shadow and nook to converge on the pile. After a few seconds of noisy and disgusting eating, everything was gone along with all the rats. Anko and Naruto sat in stunned silence.

After a tense moment of silence between the two, Anko creakingly turned her head to face Naruto with a blank expression that caused him to sweat comically under her expressionless gaze. To his creeping horror, her aura slowly changed into one of extreme rage that promised a painful death.

_Should I…_

_**Run? YES, YOU IDIOT!**_

Naruto immediately launched himself out of his seat using force on the armrests and flipped backward over the back of his chair. Two thrown kunai embedded themselves deeply into the backrest. Naruto gulped loudly as he saw the two kunai would have struck his heart and spleen if he'd sat there a moment longer.

"It's just food! No need to go psycho on me over that!" he shouted as he turned around and zigzagged acrobatically up to the roof of the dango shop, leaving distressed outdoor patrons, overturned patio tables and chairs, and several tossed kunai in his wake.

"You dared to desecrate and waste a precious dango in front of me! That's the death penalty for you! Just be happy I will make it quick, you damn gaki!" Anko shrieked as she hopped over the table to follow Naruto up to the rooftops, her kunai and shuriken flying in the direction of the retreating blonde.

It took an hour, but Naruto was able to finally hide from Anko long enough to lose her. As Anko walked off upon not finding the brat for a while, she had to admit meeting him had improved her mood. She hummed and almost skipped happily in spite of glaring villagers as she headed home, her depression pushed back for a while longer.

**Day Before Naruto Leaves For Another Three Months Training**

**Hokage's Office**

"You called for me, Jiji-san?" Naruto called out from the office door as he slowly opened it. Sarutobi perked up from his paperwork and gestured for him to come in.

"Yes, Naruto-kun. I was hoping to have you meet an ex-student of mine before you leave tomorrow. He should be here any moment."

The Third thought he saw something flash in Naruto's eyes for an instant.

"Oh really? He wouldn't happen to be Jiraiya-sama of the Sannin, would he?"

"Oh, you got it right on the first try, Naruto-kun. Not many people usually remember that I was the sensei to the Sannin before they became famous."

This time, Sarutobi knew he saw something in Naruto's face, as the boy seemed to smirk evilly for only a split-second before schooling his face in a neutral expression. He wondered just what this boy was thinking. He didn't have to think about it long before he saw a whirlwind of leaves appear in the center of the office. A large middle-aged man with long and wild white hair in a ponytail, a green robe and pants, mesh armor underneath with gauntlets, a red haori over the robe, and a giant scroll on his back appeared out of the whirlwind. His face, marked with some kabuki-style paint, flashed a brilliant smile as he twirled his ponytail around. His heavy wooden geta clacking loudly on the floor, he began doing a weird dance with kabuki poses and announced in a loud voice.

"Men fear me and women swoon over my manliness! Hailing from Mount Myouboku, I am the Legendary Womanizer, the Great Hermit Toad Sage, the ever Gallant Jir-urk!"

Jiraiya's announcement ended with a strained cry of pain as the tall man's eyes bulged out before he slowly reached down with both hands toward his precious package. It took a moment to realize that Naruto had moved behind the white-haired man while he was dancing and somehow procured a long stick out of nowhere. It was apparent he took a powerful golf-swing with it into Jiraiya's prized jewels. The Third was too stunned to say anything.

"Awesome! This stick not only works on a Kumo-nin, but on one of the Sannin too!" the blonde exclaimed gleefully as if he hadn't just hit one of the most powerful shinobi in the Elemental Nations in the nads. Jiraiya strained his voice as he groaned in extreme pain before collapsing into a twitching heap, both his hands covering his jewels. Sarutobi was about to angrily demand Naruto explain the reason for this before he was stopped cold by a growing look of cold fury on the blonde's face as the boy walked around into Jiraiya's view. The white-haired man looked up him, still in pain.

"Hello, godfather." Naruto said in a sickly sweet tone, but his cold eyes and smile did not match it. Hearing "godfather" in that cold tone made both Jiraiya and Sarutobi twitch. "This is to thank you for leaving me alone for nine years, not even bothering to check up on me." the boy finished. He looked over at the stunned Hokage.

"Sorry, Jiji-san. I'm very pissed so I'll be going somewhere to cool off. I'll be back later."

Before Sarutobi could stop the blonde, he was surprised to see the boy do the hand seals for Shunshin and the blonde disappeared in a swirl of black and orange leaves. That would have impressed the Third if he didn't have to worry about the situation at hand.

"Sensei, h-he…knows… How?" the Toad Sage's voice strained as he slowly raised himself off the floor, one of his hand still protecting his balls. Sarutobi waved his hand dismissively in the air and they felt the shocked hidden ANBU guards leave the room at once for privacy between the two.

"I did not tell him. The only explanation is that the Kyuubi must have told him."

Jiraiya narrowed his eyes at the mention of the demon fox.

"Then that means the gaki knows everything else too."

* * *

**Omake**

**One Evening at the Hyuugas'**

"That damn bastard, putting me up like a prize to be won." Naruto grumbled quietly as he sat on the sofa. Hinata and Hanabi had seized on to his body as they napped. Hinata slept in her favorite position, in which her head was on Naruto's lap with her arms tightly wrapped around his right thigh. Hanabi cuddled up tightly against Naruto's left arm.

Naruto sighed at his predicament and resigned himself to his fate for the night. He looked at the girls' cute sleeping faces and smiled slightly.

Guess it's not that bad. I'm getting a little sleepy myself anyway.

Before the boy could go to sleep, though, his ears perked up as he heard footsteps nearing. From the light steps, he figured it was one of the servants.

"Oh, how cute!" an unusually cheerful female Hyuuga exclaimed quietly as she entered the room.

"Hello, Tomoe-san. Sorry you had to see this." Naruto said as he looked over his shoulder at a long-haired and beautiful Hyuuga woman. Despite being in her 40s, she did not act or look her age, as she seemed to be more like an energetic 20-something woman in the prime of her life.

"It is okay, Uzumaki-sama. I do not mind. You know…you are a very popular topic with all the women in this clan."

"Really? Hinata-chan keeps telling me that, but I didn't believe her."

"Well you should! Lady Hinata and Lady Hanabi are so lucky they get to be like that with you on a regular basis. Hm…maybe I should join in?"

Naruto twirled his head back at the servant quickly, almost snapping it off in the process.

"Y-y-you don't have to do that!" the boy whispered nervously, trying to move but stopped as he realized the younger girls were preparing to strike at him with their Juuken if he moved any more.

"Oh, but I want to…" Tomoe trailed off, as she stepped up behind the sofa where Naruto was sitting. Naruto swore he heard some panting.

"You would not mind a very pretty woman like me cuddling up to you for a moment, would you?" the servant teased almost seductively as she bent down and slowly wrapped her arms around the comically sweating and reddening blonde's neck from behind. She rubbed her cheek against his very bright red one as she sighed contentedly.

"I do not care if I get in trouble for this. This is so worth it." Tomoe sighed while she seemed about to drift off to sleep, despite still standing bent over behind the sofa. Naruto groaned inwardly.

_Can this get any crazier?_

His answer came when Hinata started to stir, and was unknowingly moving one of her hands precariously close to where it should not go.

_Damn! Not that again!_

* * *

**This chapter probably feels like a big drop off from the awesome Chapter 8. Unfortunately I gotta make a filler chapter to fill (hehe) in some minor plots as Naruto continues to grow up. The next chapter will pick things up considerably as we meet Jiraiya and I will finally get Anko more involved in the story for good.**

**Hope you enjoyed the quick Omake. I will put in an Omake from time to time when I'm not writing epic 15,000 words chapters like I just did with Chapter 8.**


	10. An Unexpected Gift

**So...er...um. I know it's been a long time since the last chapter. I just had a lot of issues in real life to take care of first so I was a little uninspired in writing another chapter for this story until recently. As an apology, I present to you a 19,000 words chapter! (Tosses the chapter at the feet of impatient readers and runs away before they could tear him apart)**

**Oh, by the way, thanks goes to beta readers LoverofLemons, for some ideas and tweaking in this chapter, and Brian Stenzel, for helping to make this chapter readable.**

**Please read and review when you can. The more constructive reviews and criticisms I get, the more I want to write new chapters and get them out to you readers. **

**PLEASE READ BELOW**

**I know I apply warnings of mature themes in this story at the beginning with the Author's Notes, but I feel I should empathize on this particular chapter that there will be a scene of attempted rape in this chapter. Any reader who's disturbed by that should take caution. **

* * *

**WARNING: This story will contain graphic depictions of violence and gore, mature language, and sexual themes.**

**DISCLAIMER: I do not own Naruto or any of its characters.**

* * *

**Chapter 10: An Unexpected Gift**

**Inside Naruto's Mindscape**

Kurama found it hard to believe, but she had to admit to herself that she was actually worried about Naruto. The giant demon fox pondered over this rare emotion as she slowly walked on all fours among gigantic trees through the large and densely-forested portion of Naruto's mindscape. She wasn't walking aimlessly either. She had one destination in mind; the presence of Naruto's overflowing chakra directly ahead of her, and the fox could tell from the feel of the chakra that the small blonde human was extremely angry. She only felt worried like this once when Naruto ate that shy girl's bento of doom. While it would be easy to chalk that up to being simply concerned for her own life since she was linked to the boy's lifespan after all, she would be lying to herself. Kurama finally decided that she had come to care for her container like a guardian would. She would never admit that to the boy, though.

Not too long ago, she saw Naruto take his anger out on that old pervert and then disappear to the Hokage Monument for a while so he could come into the mindscape and let out some steam. She was rather alarmed when he suddenly appeared in the mindscape and only spared a glance toward her before running off into the dense forest. She decided to follow after him after an hour of not hearing or seeing any sign of the boy. Breaking out of her thoughts, the giant fox started to hear sounds of clashing metals and she realized, with some irritation, what he was doing.

"**F****oolish boy." **the fox grumbled, picking up her pace. Before long, Kurama arrived at the base of what was easily the largest and tallest tree in the forest. It dwarfed even the gigantic fox such that it was more like a normal-sized fox sitting next to an average-sized tree by comparison. She could now clearly hear the sharp sounds of swords clashing against each other. She looked up to see sparks flying a long way up the tree trunk. From that height, no one would survive the fall. The fox silently sat down on her haunches, her tails gently moving around behind her, and watched with focused red-slitted eyes.

A long way up the tree our blonde hero was sticking to the tree trunk with chakra in his feet, his two sabers flashing as they blocked a powerful overhead strike from a rather vicious-looking clone of him with its own sabers. He was doing what would be considered an extreme version of the chakra control exercise, tree-walking. Kurama had taught him that this was one way to improve his chakra control by being able to fight in close quarters on a vertical surface for at least an hour or more.

Blocking the clone's two sabers over his head with only one of his, Naruto stabbed the other saber at the clone's torso which it dodged at the last second as it gave up its attack. Not giving its creator time to rest, it tried to split his attention by stabbing at Naruto's inner thigh with its left saber while simultaneously swinging the right saber horizontally toward his neck. Naruto easily parried the strike aimed for his thigh with a flick of his right saber as he blocked the other saber with brute force. It left the clone open for a rather vicious cross slash as he swung both sabers diagonally toward each other like a scissor, cutting the clone from its right shoulder to the left hip. The shocked look on the clone's face before it dispelled seemed to snap Naruto of his anger as he let out a tired sigh.

"How long have I been doing this?" the blonde mumbled to no one in particular. He couldn't remember how long it had been since he started this. He just ran as fast as he could to this tree, created ten overpowered and rather angry clones of himself and spent all that time dodging and attacking the clones all over this massive tree until he finally whittled them down to nothing. They did not leave him unscathed either as he felt his many wounds closing up slowly. He didn't understand why he got injured in his own mindscape even though they didn't transfer to his physical body. Kurama was not sure either so they decided not to test any theory on what may happen if he actually 'died' in the mindscape. That was a question he would have to ask Yamanaka Inochi someday. As his wounds closed up, he felt extreme fatigue set in now that he wasn't running on rage-induced adrenaline any more. Unable to move, he numbly dropped the sabers from his hands, which disappeared in wisps of smoke in the air below him, before he slowly peeled off the tree as his chakra stopped its flow to his feet. Too tired to prepare for landing on the ground, he had to let his body continue its aimless free fall, hoping his impact with the ground would not actually kill his real body. Closing his eyes, he prepared for what would be a painful impact but he felt himself hitting something firm and warm sooner than he expected.

Opening his eyes, Naruto was surprised to find himself looking up at a pair of large glowing red eyes which showed some irritation. It didn't take long for him to see that the giant fox caught him as he fell and he was lying in Kurama's open hand.

"Thanks. Sorry for the trouble." Naruto could only say under the fox's annoyed gaze.

"**Moron." **Kurama grumbled as she slightly shook her head. Naruto couldn't say anything back because he knew she was right. The fox slowly moved his body up to lay it on the top of her head, surprising the boy. As soon as she felt he was secure enough, she turned around and started walking back in the direction she had come. Naruto took the time to enjoy the soft fur underneath his back, the gentle breeze whipping over him, and the scenery moving by as the fox weaved her way through the trees. Neither of them were saying anything for the moment.

"I'm surprised you let me ride on you. I pegged you as prideful." the boy mumbled softly, unsure if the fox heard him.

"**As long as this doesn't go to your head, you're the only one I would willingly allow that honor." **Kurama calmly replied as if it wasn't a big deal. Naruto allowed a small smile as he watched the branches and leaves above him move by at a brisk pace.

"**So what brought on that self-destructive streak? Considering how much we planned that old pervert's punishment beforehand, I figured you would be happy when you executed the rather simple but hilarious plan." **Kurama decided to satisfy her curiosity about her container's state of mind as they passed the time walking back to the plain. Naruto narrowed his eyes at the mention of that man.

"It's hard to describe. Part of me felt good, but most of me is still angry. I mean, he left us to our own devices for nine years, and you had to deal with being stuck inside a weak baby then a toddler hoping I would be lucky enough to survive until I was able to take care of myself. We could have both died multiple times but we got by with luck. If Jiraiya had been around, we wouldn't have had to worry about if our deaths were going to be a certainty or not every single day back then."

The fox had to admit she was surprised her container thought about her that much. He included her in his life as if it was a natural thing now. She allowed a small grin at the boy's caring nature, one that the boy wasn't able to see from where he was lying.

"So we got a small bit of revenge on that pervert, but I realized now that I'm still dwelling too much on our past treatments and no matter how much we punish or lash out at Jiraiya for his negligence, it's not going to change anything that happened. Only thing we can do is just move on and make do with whatever we can do." Naruto finished before he winced when the sunlight hit his face full force when they finally exited the forest entirely.

"**So revenge doesn't do anything?" **Kurama quizzed almost rhetorically as she slowly lay down on the soft grass resting her head on her crossed arms with Naruto still lying on her forehead.

"I'm not sure. It's not like Jiraiya murdered someone precious to me in cold blood. I just know my anger didn't lessen even one bit even after I knocked his nads around. I wonder if Sasuke-teme thought about what would happen if he managed to kill Itachi?" The fox gave a lazy shrug.

"**I honestly don't care about that wretched Uchiha. All I have seen from my observations of that boy is that he was willing to use anything possible to gain power as quickly as possible, damn the consequences afterward. He is not going to let anything get in his way, so I repeat my warning about him. Do not show your back to him even for a moment." **

Naruto nodded weakly. After a few minutes of silence, he felt his body getting its strength back. Not wishing to test the extent of Kurama's generosity, he got up and gently jumped off.

"Thanks for the ride, sensei. It felt nice seeing what the world's most powerful creature sees." Naruto teased with some flattery. Kurama just snorted and allowed a small grin.

"**Looks like the old pervert is coming up on your position. Time for you to get out of here." **

"Alright. Thanks for letting me know. Also thanks for telling me what mom used to call Jiraiya. It's going to annoy the hell out of him." Naruto said with a vicious grin that made the demon fox proud. Kurama chuckled as she watched the boy vanish from the mindscape. She then closed her eyes for a nap.

_**Naruto can handle himself against the old pervert. **_

**Konoha's Hokage Monument on Yondaime's head**

Naruto's eyes snapped open as he found himself in his lotus pose on top of his father's head. He took a moment to enjoy the beautiful night view of Konoha from the monument before he decided to break the peaceful silence in the air.

"Oi, Ero-sennin." Naruto grinned evilly as he heard a large man face-fault out of a tree onto the ground behind him.

"T-the hell? There's no way you could know about tha-!" the 'Ero-sennin' roared as he got up from the ground before he stopped suddenly, realizing it was a trap. Naruto turned to give his godfather a foxy grin.

"Gotcha. Guess what I'll be calling you from now on, _Ero-sennin_?"

Jiraiya immediately fell on all fours with a dark cloud forming overhead.

"First your parents, and now you! Am I ever going to escape that name?!"

"If you weren't such a damn pervert like the fox told me from her time inside mom, you might get away with a different nickname. Just think of this as part of the payback for leaving me at the mercy of this village for most of my early years." Naruto evenly said as he looked out over the village. Jiraiya flinched at the reminder of his negligence.

"Gaki, for what it's worth, I'm really sorry. I'd give you some bullshit excuses like having to maintain my spy network, but the fact is that I was terrified of the notion of raising a child. I left you in Sarutobi-sensei's care hoping he would give you a better childhood than what I thought I could give you considering I basically do a lot of my spying in bars and brothels." Jiraiya tried to offer before he was surprised by Naruto's head turning sharply toward him, his blue eyes turning icy and his face twisting into rage.

"BETTER CHILDHOOD? Growing up in an orphanage hated and bullied by everyone there while getting as little food and care as they could give me until I was kicked out? Living by myself in a broken down apartment building while they gleefully vandalized it until there wasn't a single inch of that building left to damage? Having my existence deliberately ignored by everyone around me no matter where I go? I TRIED TO COMMIT SUICIDE FOUR TIMES, FOR FUCK"S SAKE! WHAT KIND OF 'BETTER CHILDHOOD' WOULD FORCE A FIVE-YEAR OLD TO CONSIDER THAT OPTION?" Naruto roared at his godfather, his eyes flickering between ice blue and bright red. Jiraiya's face was ashen by the end of the boy's rant.

"Y-y-ou...tried...?" the Toad Sage tried to choke out before he was stopped when Naruto let out a frustrated exhalation and averted his gaze from the white-haired man to look over the village with pain evident in his eyes.

"And the worst part of this? I never knew why this was happening to me, even right after when I tried to take my own life. It took a demon stuck in my stomach to save me from making the worst mistake I ever made and I never knew that for another two years. It's a good timing that things picked up for me and I made friends after that incident because I never had to think about trying to kill myself again. While things did get better and I finally understood why this was happening to me, I would be hard pressed to trust your or even Jiji-san's word over the fox's. So far, aside from the fact that Jiji-san let me be trained by the Kyuubi, you two have made crappy decisions regarding me, and she has made all the right ones. I wonder how the entire village would feel if they find out that the demon fox that nearly destroyed this place did a better job of raising the son of the man that saved them?" Naruto finished by sweeping both his arms out over the view of the sleepy village. Jiraiya's gaze fell to the ground, ashamed of what he allowed to happen to his favorite student's child.

"Naruto...if you don't want me around, I would under-" the Toad Sage tried to offer before he was interrupted.

"I didn't say that, Ero-sennin. Sure, you and Jiji-san were too naïve to think I would have been okay back then. However, it happened already and we can't change that. I just wanted you to know the kind of crap I went through to get here so you'd know why I was feeling a little peeved at you. I still am actually, but the fact is that dad and mom still appointed you as my godfather and I'd like to get to know you. Plus, you're one of the Legendary Sannin and I'd be stupid to turn down training from you if you're still offering...even if you're a damn pervert." Naruto said with a small smile. Jiraiya was stunned by this child's maturity and he was happy that Naruto still wanted to give this a try. Still, he felt he needed to correct this boy on one detail.

"I'm really sorry and thank you for your forgiveness, gaki. However, I'm not just a damn pervert! I'm a SUPER PERVERT!" the 'Super Pervert' yelled at the top of his lungs out to the entire village before striking an odd pose. Almost instantly, lights flickered on in the village below and random shouts of anger echoed up to the two on the monument. Naruto had to slap a palm to his forehead.

_He willingly admitted that! Just what the hell did I get myself into with this old pervert?_

**A few days later at the secret training ground**

"Alright gaki, time to see what you're made of. Just come at me with some of the stuff you've learned the past couple years and we'll go from there on how to train this summer." Jiraiya announced as he set down his travel bag and large scroll on the ground next to him.

"Really? So soon after arriving?" Naruto said with a raised eyebrow, but he went ahead and set his bag down as well and started stretching his body out. They hadn't even unlocked the small shack at the edge of the training field yet.

"The way I see it, you only have three months to practice controlling the Kyuubi's chakra, however from what Sarutobi-sensei told me, you can only use that mode for up to thirty minutes. The rest of the time will be spent practicing whatever the fox and I teach you. That includes sealing since I've been told you have some interest in that and I'm a seal master, though not as good as your father and mother were. I still have to do my spying so I'll have to leave Konoha as soon as we get back until your next break. I'd like to at least make up for being a crappy godfather up until now by teaching you as much as I can for the next three months." Jiraiya said as matter-of-factly before he stretched as well, feeling some of his bones pop. It had been a while since he sparred with someone.

"At least I should be glad there will be no women nearby for miles. I heard stories from the fox about dad complaining to mom about how you left him alone often to peek on women, Ero-sennin." Naruto said with a smirk at his godfather's annoyed expression.

"Something tells me I'm not going to enjoy being double-teamed by you and that fox on wits."

_Do you remember anything about Ero-sennin's capabilities? _Naruto inwardly asked his tenant.

_**He primarily uses fire and earth jutsu. In addition to that, he can summon toads and knows specialized jutsu from the toad clan. As powerful as your father was, this old pervert usually gave Minato a hard time in their spars. You will not beat him as you are now.**_

_I know. Just thought I'd at least make him put in a little effort if I can help it. Though too bad I don't have any element that would overcome his elemental jutsu. _

Naruto finished his stretching and walked into the center of the clearing while his godfather did the same, both checking each other out.

_This gaki walks with confidence and grace. What Sarutobi-sensei said about this kid's training in taijutsu and kenjutsu is true then. I'll enjoy seeing a taijustu style I've never seen before up close. _Jiraya thought as he stood with a relaxed pose in front of Naruto.

_Damn, this guy knows he's going to kick my ass, and I can't even say otherwise. Guess I'll try a straightforward approach for now. _Naruto thought as he bent forward with his feet wide, his arms hanging between his legs, as if he was a beast posing to strike. He channeled chakra to his hands to sharpen his fingernails into claws. Jiraiya raised an eyebrow with an intrigued smirk at the display.

They stood still for a long moment before Naruto finally broke into a fast dash on all fours toward his still unmoving opponent. The blonde suddenly jumped and spun acrobatically toward Jiraiya's head with a vicious spin kick. Jiraiya simply put an arm up to block the kick and Naruto had to grunt in slight pain at the block. It was like hitting a metal pole! Not wanting to give Jiraiya any time, he reached out and grabbed the still-blocking arm while he was still in the air and pulled with all his effort as he fell back down to the ground. Jiraiya was momentarily surprised as he felt himself lurching forward before he recovered and decided to let the boy play this out. Upon landing on the ground, Naruto used the momentum from his opponent's lurching forward to pull with all his effort to throw him overhead, which impressed the much larger and heavier man. He let himself fly before recovering and landing gracefully on the opposite side of Naruto from where he was standing earlier. Naruto used this time to jump toward Jiraiya's back for another kick. Jiraiya would not allow that as he spun around and tried to backhand the boy in the air. Naruto saw it coming and tried to block the fist with both hands which spun him in the air from the older man's greater strength. Naruto, ever the opportunist, used the spinning to add momentum to a vicious overhead kick aimed right for Jiraiya's forehead. The older man simply grabbed the boy's ankle before spinning him around once before throwing him far away. Naruto recovered in the air and landed on his feet some distance away, watching his godfather warily.

"So that's the Raging Fox, huh? I'll admit it's an interesting style that seems to be focused on feints and moments of opportunity. A major flaw with that is that you're facing a large opponent and I already know your striking and kicking kata aren't effective against me so I just have to watch out for your throwing and grappling. I'll help you work on how to take better advantage of openings your opponents leave until you're sufficiently large and strong enough to take on adults. Until then, I can tell you'll kick your peers' asses easily. Now show me some jutsu you like to use." Jiraiya said with a come-hither motion. Naruto smirked at his sensei's praise before he formed the familiar hand sign for **Kage no Bunshin. **Two clones poofed into existence on both sides of their creator. Jiraiya raised an eyebrow.

"I knew you'd have massive chakra reserves, but to know that jutsu already is impressive. Are those all you can make?"

"Nope. Not even remotely close. I can go into hundreds easily. I just wanted them out here to do some collaboration jutsu. Be ready to dodge. I'd hate to have a dead godfather a few days after meeting him." Naruto teased with a smirk. Jiraiya snorted.

"You're good, gaki, but you're still a long way from even worrying me."

Naruto didn't respond, instead he looked at the clones and gave a short nod.

All three of them took out a shuriken each and threw them toward Jiraiya. Immediately they all blurred through hand signs.

"**Shuriken Kage no Bunshin!" **all three yelled out. Jiraiya was surprised this kid knew one of his Sensei's favorite jutsu. The three shuriken multiplied into hundreds as the three blondes pumped in a lot of chakra. Jiraiya smiled and was about to go through the hand seals for **Doton: ****Doryūheki (Earth-Style Wall) **to protect himself from the shuriken when he was surprised to see the three blondes go through another set of hand seals and yelled out "**Futon: Reppūshõ(Violent Wind Palm)!**".

The three Narutos clapped their hands together and a large gust of wind blew out in front of them. It wasn't strong enough to knock over Jiraiya but it sped up the hundreds of shuriken hurling toward him considerably. He cursed as he didn't have enough time to raise an Earth Wall. Instead he did a seal-less **Doton: ****Moguragakure no Jutsu**** (Hiding Like a Mole) **to quickly get underground under all the shuriken screaming over his head. As quickly as he got underground he popped back up in time to see the shuriken shred a large portion of the forest into splinters behind him at the edge of the clearing. The Toad Sage had to gulp a little as he briefly imagined himself in that path. Jiraiya looked around to see Naruto's clones had dispelled from the chakra they used and he created just one more clone. However, the sage could feel this clone was much more powerful. He quickly took himself out of the ground and prepared for whatever this kid may have been planning. The two Narutos smirked and started going through hand seals. Jiraiya noticed they were using two different sets of seals.

_One's fire, a very strong one, and the other is...wind!? Oh fuck._

"**Katon: Karyu Endan(Dragon Flame Bullet)!"**

"**Futon: Daitoppa(Great Breakthrough)!" **

Both Naruto and his clone yelled before they inhaled as much as they could. Jiraiya took this brief moment to blur through hand seals. Both Narutos expelled, one blowing out gale-force wind and the other blew out a large stream of white-hot fire. They combined to create a gigantic wave of white inferno, instantly scorching the ground underneath as it screamed toward Jiraiya.

"**Doton: ****Doryūheki!" **Jiraiya yelled as he spit out three streams of mud on the ground in front of him. As the massive wave of white fire neared, the Toad Sage could feel the heat almost overpowering him. The first stream formed into a thick earth wall rising high into the air, followed by the second and third, creating a triple-layered earth wall just before the inferno crashed with a loud roar. Even with protection from the fire, Jiraiya winced as he felt himself slowly burning from the intense heat and his breathing was getting short due to the fire burning a lot of oxygen in the air. The first layer already melted and the second was starting to go.

_Damn that brat! His fire affinity's so high he was able to make that fire jutsu burn white-hot like Sensei could. I'll actually have to put in a tiny bit of effort. _

Naruto smirked as he and the clone stopped their jutsu and the clone popped due to depleting its allotted chakra. He knew that collaboration would be powerful but it cost a lot of chakra. He'll have to save that for if he needed to make an area-effect attack or as a last resort. He admired the intensity of his combined justu as he watched the earth walls Jiraiya created crumble into a smoldering pile of molten dirt and rocks. He didn't have long before his instincts screamed at him to jump. He did so a split second before a pair of hands reached up through the ground toward where his feet would have been a moment ago. Surprised for an instant, Naruto shook it off and blurred through hand seals while he was still in the air.

"**Katon: ****Goukakyuu(Grand Fireball)!****" **Naruto yelled as he spat out a large ball of fire that hurtled toward the ground where Jiraiya's hands were still sticking out. Upon impact, it blew up in a massive explosion that nearly blew Naruto out of the air. However, Naruto couldn't help but feel that was a trap. As if on cue, Jiraiya appeared behind him in the air and, before the blonde could do anything, the large man smashed Naruto to the ground with a vicious slam. The blonde bounced on the ground on impact and laid still for a moment as Jiraiya landed with a serious expression on his face. The unmoving Naruto suddenly dispelled but this didn't surprise Jiraiya as he looked behind to see Naruto try to hit him with a spin kick from the blind spot. The older man simply swung his fist backward to smash into the boy's stomach, making him fly back, only for this Naruto to disappear into smoke as well. Jiraiya raised an eyebrow before he heard hands clapping together and turned to front to see the blonde standing right in front of him as he finished his sealing.

"**Futon: Daitoppa!" **Naruto yelled as he expelled his jutsu at point blank. Jiraiya widened his eyes in shock as gale-force wind smashed into him hard, making him fly backward into the forest with a tremendous crash. Naruto panted a little.

_How's that!? I bet that was more effort than he expected to put in for our first spar. _

_**I'd like to think he wasn't expecting that but I'm not going to bet on that. **_

Naruto was about to retort but it died in his throat when he heard a barely noticeable but distinctive sound of a clone popping in the forest.

"Shadow clone!? Where is he?" the blonde exclaimed out loud as he looked around.

"Impressive for a nine-year-old, and to help your confusion, I switched with the clone after that fire and wind jutsu." a deep voice spoke up behind the boy as Naruto twirled around to face his godfather. Jiraiya was looking at Naruto as if he was making a simple observation. Naruto put his hands up in a defensive stance while Jiraiya smiled almost too gleefully as he prepared to make his attack.

"I think I'll take it up a notch to show you how big of a gap it is between you and me in terms of strength and experience. Be ready."

Naruto gulped and he had cold sweat on his entire body as he felt a small glimpse of the white-haired man's massive power.

_**Good luck, Naruto. I remember seeing your father having harried and dead-looking expressions on his face whenever he had to train with this old pervert when he was younger. Looks like your godfather plans to make this into a family tradition. **_Kurama spoke up from inside the seal, a little worried for her container's well-being.

Naruto was ready to run when Jiraiya dashed forward with unseen speed and an evil smile plastered on his face.

**Several hours of torture...I mean, training later**

"Yo." Hatake Kakashi, one of the Elite Jounin of Konoha, walked into the clearing, lazily waving a hand as he kept reading an orange book in his other hand. Jiraiya turned to the masked and silver-haired shinobi, now dressed in full Konoha jounin outfit instead of his ANBU outfit.

"Hello, Kakashi. Nice of you to finally join us." the Toad Sage greeted with an annoyed expression at his fellow shinobi's tardiness.

"Sorry, Jiraiya-sama. A squad of missing-nins crossed my path and I had to neutralize them." Kakashi replied with his lone eye crinkling into an eye-smile. Jiraiya cocked his head.

"That sounds like an actual legitimate excuse."

"That's because it was." Kakashi clarified with a somewhat affronted tone. Jiraiya chuckled.

"How are you enjoying changing posts from ANBU to a regular elite jounin?"

"I haven't done anything yet. I asked Hokage-sama for some time off in between posts and he suggested this trip as some sort of vacation to train and unwind. I'll tell you right now, I'm not going to miss all those S-ranked missions I had to do."

"Don't I know it. There should be a limit to the time anyone spends with the ANBU since that can take a toll on anyone's humanity."

"So, where is Naruto? I was told he'd be here as well." Kakashi inquired, looking around the clearing. Jiraiya smirked and pointed a finger in a certain direction. Kakashi's gaze followed the indicated direction. At first, he had to squint his eye to look for anything about their charge.

_Where is he? All I see is that odd lumpy blue, black, yellow, and orange rock. Wait, is that him?!_

Kakashi snapped his head toward Jiraiya with a wide eye. The Toad Sage laughed uproariously.

"I wanted to spar with him and I might have gone a little overboard."

"A little?" Kakashi echoed with a disbelieving eye.

"Don't look at me like that. He's one hell of a brat. Wouldn't stay down no matter how much shit I beat out of him. I had to knock him unconscious before he got injured any further." Jiraiya spoke with pride in his tone as he remembered Naruto keeping getting up in front of him no matter how overwhelming the odds were.

"I would think you'd be more careful with a nine-year-old, especially when he's the son of your favorite student."

"We both know he's no ordinary kid. He'll be great in the future. It makes no sense to pull punches with him if he can take it and do everything it takes to dish it out." Jiraiya said as he pointed at a large patch of scorched earth left by Naruto's collaboration jutsu. Kakashi was actually impressed by that.

"In any case, the gaki should be up any minute. He'll have recovered enough thanks to the Kyuubi. Go ahead and introduce yourself to him. I'm going to hunt for lunch for us." Jiraiya said as he walked off, waving over his shoulder.

Kakashi shrugged and walked over to the 'lumpy rock' to watch in fascination as the blonde boy had his black and blue bruises slowly disappear from sight. Just a moment later, the boy sat up.

"Oow...feels like I fell down a ravine few times. That Ero-sennin is even more sadistic than Hiashi." Naruto whined as he held a hand to his forehead.

"Hello."

Naruto jumped to his feet and turned around to see a masked one-eyed shinobi looming over him. For a second he thought this guy was an enemy nin but he calmed down as soon as he saw the Konoha hitai-ate.

"Who are you? Are you the second person Jiji-san sent?"

"That'd be correct. My name's Hatake Kakashi and you can call me Kakashi. I'm tagging along for a little vacation along with helping Jiraiya-sama out some. I look forward to working with you."

"Likewise. Nice to finally see your face,, even though most of it's still hidden, Inu-san." Naruto said with a smile. He smiled wider when he saw Kakashi's eye widen a little at being called out by his former ANBU identity. Naruto pointed at his nose for clarification.

"Great sense of smell, Kakashi-san. I remember your scent from when you helped me out sometimes few years ago. Thank you for that, by the way."

"You're welcome. No one deserves that kind of treatment, even more when it was my sensei's son."

"Really? You were one of my dad's students? I hope you'll share some stories with me about him whenever you can." Naruto exclaimed with a big grin. Kakashi nodded with an eye-smile.

"Now then, Jiraiya-sama is hunting for food. Let's get settled in and get you rested up. We'll resume when we finish eating." Kakashi advised as he turned around to walk toward the shack, his orange book back up. Naruto flinched and paled.

"More beat downs from Ero-sennin!"

**Two months later**

"**RAAAAARRGH!" **Naruto roared as he felt himself losing control of himself to the Kyuubi's malevolent chakra.

_**NARUTO! Snap out of it! The experiment failed! You have to control yourself now! **_Kurama roared inside the boy's head. She was not expecting such a massive backlash from trying to contain the chakra shroud within him, hoping to improve the possibility of an actual beast transformation instead of a chakra shroud. Instead when Naruto tried to compress the chakra inward, the chakra increased in intensity and fought back. Due to the backlash, Naruto lost control of himself easily before he could drop the shroud. Now, he was becoming mindless as his three-tailed chakra shroud started to glow with an intense red, an indication that he was moving up to the more uncontrollable four-tailed mode.

"Shit! Something went wrong! Kakashi, you distract him while I apply this seal!" Jiraiya commanded as he pulled out a piece of paper with an intricate seal on it. Kakashi didn't even bother to respond as he immediately moved in front of the enraged Naruto.

**Later that evening**

Naruto awoke with a start. He frantically looked around to see it was nighttime and he was outside in the clearing when he finally saw Kakashi and Jiraiya sitting nearby next to a fire while they were making some food. Both of them were looking at the blonde for any indication that he really was Naruto. Naruto sighed with relief and he looked down at the ground.

"I lost control, didn't I?"

Both men gave grim nods. Naruto shivered and felt nauseous. That was a horrible feeling and he never wanted to experience that again.

"Did either of you get hurt?"

"No. We were ready for it and I immediately applied the seal to your forehead just before you went four-tail. It's a good thing we did this with controlled conditions. In any case, I don't think we're going to try that again. According to what you said about the fox's theory on this, you should have showed some sign of a physical transformation long before it got out of hand and, with the transformation, you'd control the chakra more easily. Needless to say, that didn't happen. So I guess we'll call that a failure and I strongly advise you to keep the Kyuubi's chakra to three tails for the time being until we find a workaround." Jiraiya explained as he stirred the meat stew over the fire.

"Dammit!" Naruto cursed as he slowly stood up to sit across from the men for his meal. He spent the dinner looking down at the ground as he absentmindedly ate his food. The two men exchanged concerned looks but decided to leave the boy in peace for now.

_You know my body. What happened that I couldn't transform, Kurama?_

_**To be honest, I have no clue. Obviously there is a missing piece from all of this. I've seen other Jinchuuriki transform using this same method so it should have worked with us as well. **_

_I guess it's because you're too powerful. _

_**As much as I hate to admit this, but I'm not as strong as I was just before I was sealed into you. I'm still more powerful than the other bijuu, but your father did something unusual with your sealing compared to other Jinchuurikis' sealing. He had the Shinigami seal half of my power into itself and sealed the rest of me into you. **_

Naruto seemed to have a light bulb go off in his head.

_Wait. Maybe that was the cause. Dad did something with your chakra. _

_**Well, it did hurt when he split me in two. **_

_I'll ask Ero-sennin. He should know more about that night. _

"Oi, Ero-sennin. I was talking with the fox and we might have a theory on why this didn't work. Can I ask you something?"

Jiraiya looked up from his meal and nodded. Kakashi was reading his orange book, but Naruto knew he was listening too.

"The night when dad sealed the fox into me, exactly what did he do? More specifically, what was special about the portion of the fox that he sealed into the Shinigami?"

Jiraiya widened his eyes and had a thoughtful expression for a long moment.

"I think you hit the nail on the head. According to the scroll on the seal he used, I did see that Minato specified that the Kyuubi's chakra be split in two in a certain way. One is of the Ying essence while the other half is Yang essence. It just so happened that Minato sealed the Yang essence into the Shinigami."

Naruto flinched when Kurama roared in frustration. The two men knew the boy was talking with the fox so they kept silent.

_**DAMN IT! That's why you could not transform! You were using only the Ying essence, which is of the spiritual kind. The chakra shroud and everything works fine thanks to that. However, Yang is physical! You need that to properly transform and also dilute the pure spiritual essence of my chakra. Without it, you'll deal with my chakra in its purest form for the rest of your life. That means you'll be more sensitive to the malevolence and hatred it tries to push on you, making it more difficult, if not impossible to keep control the more tails you gain. The only other way to control more of my power is to claim my chakra as your own and I do not know of a method to do that. Perhaps a more experienced Jinchuuriki may know but right now we're stuck where we are. I know your father meant well, but he really inconvenienced us with this. **_

Naruto sighed as he took in all of this information and relayed everything to the two older men. They also sighed as well.

"Damn. You're plenty scary enough in three-tail mode right now, but you would have been downright terrifying with nine tails. Too bad we may not see that." Jiraiya murmured as he continued to think over this new information.

"I guess we'll just find another workaround later on. Do you know of anything I could use, Ero-sennin?"

"It won't be for a while but I'll have you sign the toads' summoning contract. That will give you some powerful allies to fight with in battles. In addition to that, you can also train to use senjutsu with nature chakra if you're deemed worthy enough by the elder toads. I don't think we'll even worry about you being unworthy though."

"Senjustu? What's that?"

"It's a powerful technique in which you gather nature chakra into yourself to increase your body's strength, speed, durability, and chakra reserves. It's like a tailed beast transformation only without the malevolent chakra. I call it Sage Mode."

"Wow! Could I do that now?" Naruto excitedly asked before he was disappointed by a shake of Jiraiya's head.

"No. You could, but it would be inconvenient for everyone involved. You're still growing-" Jiraiya said while pointing at the blonde with a fork in his hand. "-and with senjutsu, you need to train your body to get used to calling upon a specific amount of nature chakra to balance with your own chakra and the Kyuubi's as well. So that means if you had trained your body now, you'd have to train every other week to get used to balancing that specific amount of nature chakra as your chakra coils and reserves continued to grow with your body as you age. If you mess up and call in the wrong amount of nature chakra, you will die because it could turn your body into stone. We're going have to wait on that until you have grown up sufficiently.

Naruto gulped at the notion of dying using this dangerous chakra and decided he would wait until Jiraiya deemed him ready.

"Guess I'll just focus on developing myself in the meantime."

**Day of departure for Konoha**

"It's been fun teaching you, gaki. I got to learn a lot about you and I'm proud to be your godfather." Jiraiya declared as he adjusted the straps of his backpack. Naruto grinned before frowning.

"You're not going to come back to Konoha with us, Ero-sennin?"

"You'll go with Kakashi, gaki. I have to go meet one of my contacts right away."

Naruto looked down with some slight disappointment. Jiraiya smiled.

"Don't worry. I'll be back on your next break and we can work on more stuff. Now, remember your homework. Finish the books on sealing I gave you. You should be able to create your own storage seals and other basic stuff by the time I come back around. Also, here's a little extra credit." Jiraiya mischievously said as he held a hand out. Naruto looked on with some confusion before his eyes widened in amazement as he watched a tightly compressed blue ball of chakra slowly form in the Toad Sage's hand. As soon as it appeared, it disappeared in a small whirlwind of dissipated chakra.

"What was that?! I want to learn that!" Naruto hopped up and down excitedly. Jiraiya chuckled.

"That's what I plan to teach you in a couple years. It's one of your father's jutsu called the **Rasengan**."

"Wow! Why show me now if you're not going to teach me yet, though?"

"You're a pretty smart kid, so I want to see if you could do it yourself and be able to recreate the Rasengan from just seeing mine for a few seconds. It's a difficult jutsu to master but the three steps to do it are pretty easy to figure out and follow. So I want to see if you can figure it out yourself."

"I'll give it a try. That looks like a useful jutsu to have since it didn't seem to need seals. Imagine that with the Raging Fox."

Jiraiya felt a small shiver at the prospect of Naruto jumping and feinting around with that Rasengan in his hand. That'd be a sight to see especially since he helped Naruto improve and augment his Raging Fox style with the shadow clones. In their recent spars, Jiraiya and Kakashi had to stay on their toes a little against Naruto. He patted Naruto on the head and said his goodbyes as he walked off in a different direction. Kakashi and Naruto left shortly after that for Konoha.

"So, Kakashi-sensei, what is so great about that orange book that I've seen you reread millions of time this summer? I think I've also seen Jiji-san with that book too." Naruto curiously inquired about the bright orange book in the older man's hand after a few minutes of walking.

"I think I'll wait on telling you that. You're not of age yet and there's a list of people that would kill me if they find out I was the one who told you about these books. Thank you for some blackmail material on Hokage-sama, however." Kakashi whispered out the last part as he flipped a page on his precious porn book. Naruto cocked his head in confusion.

_Think I'll have a look and see if any store has that when I get back._

Seeing the gears turning in the boy's mind, Kakashi silently prayed to the heavens.

_Forgive me, Minato-sensei and Kushina-san. I think I may have inadvertently sparked your son's curiosity about these porn books. _

Kurama remained silent inside the seal as she felt Naruto's intentions of finding out more about these books and sighed. She wasn't sure if she wanted to warn her container about the contents of these books. On one hand, it would be hilarious to see her container's reaction. On the other, it would confuse him like hell about females for a good while. Most importantly, if she warned him, it would raise questions on how she actually knew about the porn content in these books. She doubted Kushina wanted that dark and dirty secret to get out.

**Back in Konoha – Hokage's office**

"-and here we are." Kakashi finished reporting on his 'vacation' with Naruto and Jiraiya, his face still buried in the orange book as he leaned against the wall next to the Hokage's desk. In a related matter, a certain purple-haired female ANBU guard hidden in the room fumed at the elite jounin's blatant display.

"Thank you for coming here, Kakashi-san. It sounds like it was an interesting summer for all three of you. I'm glad to hear Naruto-kun has gotten along well with Jiraiya-kun on this trip. I was worried there may have been some resentment from that boy." the Third Hokage spoke softly with a smile. "And did you think you've sufficiently rested up from your former position in the ANBU?"

Kakashi gave a lazy shrug.

"I'll admit working with Naruto over the summer improved my mood and let me settle a few issues I had when I was working as an ANBU. Now I think I'm ready to take on missions as a regular Jounin. I might even take on a team sooner or later."

The Hokage smiled. He could tell the boy changed Kakashi's attitude a little.

"You may not get a team for a while if you followed your sensei and decided to do the bell test."

Kakashi shrugged as if he didn't care.

"If they can't do it, then they don't deserve to be my students. Simple as that."

"Good luck with that. I'm curious as to where Naruto-kun is this time. Last time he came back from the trip, he played a prank on me."

"Um...I think he was interested in something. It was distracting him on the way back." Kakashi nervously said as he felt a bead of sweat going down his cheek. He had an idea of what was bothering Naruto and he prayed to Kami that boy didn't follow up on his curiosity. He closed his book at that point and put it away.

"Really, what would that be?" the Third innocently asked. Kakashi shifted a little under his superior's curious gaze.

"I-I wouldn't know. He didn't tell me." It was technically true. He could tell what was on that boy's mind, though.

"Now I think I'll excuse myself and let you get back to your business, Hokage-sama." Kakashi tried to remove himself from the office because he was increasingly having a bad feeling. Before the Hokage could dismiss him, they both were bowled over by a loud voice that rattled the entire village.

"AS KINATO SLOWLY PUSHED HIS LONG AND SLENDER FINGER INTO MUSHINA'S SOAKING AND QUIVERING FLOWER PETAL...WHAT THE HELL IS THIS!?"

Kakashi froze in place and went pale as the Hokage seemed confused for a minute before realization struck him.

"Wait a minute! I know tha-! *Ahem* I mean, that sounds suspiciously like a line from a porn book, and that was Naruto-kun's voice. Would you care to elaborate?" the Hokage kindly asked but his hard gaze promised pain if Kakashi didn't explain himself quickly. The jounin was also unnerved by a massive killing intent spiking from the female ANBU guard still hiding out of sight in the office and he could feel her reaching for her sword.

"I'msorrybuthewouldn'tstopbeingcuriousabouttheboo keventhoughIwarnedhim!" Kakashi quickly got out in one breath as he bowed repeatedly at the hips.

"I see. How about this, Kakashi-san? Your first mission upon your reinstatement as a jounin will be to go find that poor and very confused boy and _clearly_ explain to him the facts of life between a man and a woman. It's about time for that lesson in the Academy soon anyway. As you have so graciously volunteered yourself without pay, I'll absolve you of any punishment. You'll have to take care of any issue my ANBU guard Neko-san over there seems to have with you on your own time, however." the Hokage spoke softly as he rubbed one of his temples. Kakashi flinched and sweated comically as the killing intent from the purple-haired ANBU, now out of hiding and brandishing her sword threateningly, increased even more. The jounin quickly bowed for one last time and disappeared from the office followed by the female ANBU.

"YOU SON OF A BITCH! HOW DARE YOU AND JIRAIYA CORRUPT THAT INNOCENT LITTLE BOY!" the purple-haired ANBU's female voice screeched with righteous feminine rage outside the office almost immediately after their departure and there were sounds of a skirmish.

"INNOCENT? NARUTO?! TRY TRAINING WITH HIM FOR THREE MONTHS AND DEALING WITH HIS PRANKS!" Kakashi's panicked yelling faded as he ran from the Hokage tower with an enraged ANBU hot on his heels. Sarutobi had to chuckle and then started laughing happily before he leaned back into his chair with one thought.

_That boy...he always seems to find ways to make our lives interesting._

**Several hours later in one of the village's parks**

Naruto sat stock still on a park bench on the other side from a clearly uncomfortable Kakashi who was sporting several superficial cuts from a sword for some reason. The silver-haired Jounin had just finished explaining the 'facts of life' in deep detail to the wide-eyed boy a moment ago and now he was waiting for any reaction from the blonde. They sat still for what seemed like hours but only minutes in reality. Kakashi found a random rock on the ground very interesting in the meantime.

"So, this-" the red-faced blonde suddenly blurted out as he weakly pointed down to his own nether-region.

"Yes." Kakashi quickly interrupted as if to trying to head off further discomfort.

"-goes into a girl's v-v-vagina-" Naruto simply ignored Kakashi's attempts at cutting off the conversation.

"That's right."

"-or her m-m-mouth-"

"If she wants to do that."

"-or her b-b-butt."

"Kami has blessed you if she really wants that one." Kakashi sighed inwardly as he gave up on trying to stop this conversation and decided to just be honest and answer every question now rather than later. The quicker he got away from this, the better.

"But, as you have explained, the girl can have a b-b-baby only if she gets t-t-the s-s-semen in her v-v-vagina."

Kakashi would have found Naruto's uncharacteristic stuttering and blushing amusing if they weren't talking about such a serious subject.

"A couple doesn't necessarily need to have sex only to have children. They do it as an adult form of love for each other and/or to show their appreciation for each other's physical attractiveness. The reasons for having sex can be many and complicated so that's why it's best for you to grow up a bit more and come of age either as a genin or a civilian at sixteen before you can make such important decisions about that when you find girls you'd be attracted to."

"Girls? As in plural?" Naruto looked at Kakashi in confusion. It sounded to Kakashi like Naruto was expecting it to be very difficult, even impossible, to find even just one girl who'd find him attractive. He didn't understand where this boy got this surprisingly low confidence in himself from. He'd have to remedy that.

"Considering you have your father's good looks, I should warn you that when Minato-sensei was younger, he had the attention of a lot of powerful and attractive kunoichi. It go so bad that Kushina-san had to beat them off to claim your dad only to herself. I imagine you may run into a similar situation, especially since you're going to be a strong and well-known shinobi in the future."

_**I can confirm this statement from my time in your mother. **_Kurama suddenly put in her two-cent from inside the seal.

"But, what about..." Naruto trailed off as he was basically speaking to Kakashi and Kurama at the same time.

"The fox in you? I'll admit that may discourage some women from considering you as a potential boyfriend material. However, do you really want to pay attention to these women in the first place if they're so easily influenced by something you cannot help?"

_**The scarecrow's right. I will never approve of these females and I will make it known if I think they're unworthy of my container. **_

Naruto flashed back to when Hinata easily accepted his situation and when Temari rejected him.

"I see what you mean by that."

"Now I told you all of this only because you could not help your curiosity and started reading one of Jiraiya-sama's porn books. You will have a sex education lesson later this year in the academy so there's really no harm in telling you a bit sooner, however I'll admit that'll be a lot less detailed than what I told you today. I just want you to really understand that because you now know all of this, it should not mean you should actively look out for any girl willing to try something with you because you're definitely not ready for that yet. Just naturally let it happen if you and the girl are attracted to each other and that situation probably won't even happen for at least several years at the earliest. In the meantime, just enjoy being a kid because that'll be over the moment you become a shinobi, ok?" Kakashi said with a serious expression. The blonde looked deep in thought for a minute before looking at the older man with bright eyes and his foxy grin.

"Thanks for taking the time to tell me, Kakashi-sensei."

Kakashi simply responded with his famous eye-smile. Naruto's eyes suddenly widened and his face went white.

"Oh shit..."

The Jounin looked over at the blonde in concern.

"Now I know what was up with the blood I've smelled occasionally on women!"

Kakashi cringed at the thought for a moment before breaking into an uncharacteristically loud laugh.

"It's not funny! I just realized I publicly embarrassed two women a couple years ago when I didn't know any better!"

"That was you?! I heard a story around the ANBU headquarters about how a kid announced to everyone within earshot that Neko-san was having her period. They said they've never seen her so flustered. I would have liked to see that!" Kakashi got out between laughs.

"It's not like I wanted to do that! I never knew what that was all about! Now I understand why Jiji-san and the fox were so uncomfortable when I asked them what was up, and why Anko-san was so adamant about me not calling any woman out whenever I smelled blood. I'll have to apologize to Neko-san and Anko-san later on."

Kakashi froze mid-laugh.

"Y-you mean to tell me the other woman you embarrassed was Anko? Mitarashi Anko?"

"Yeah. What's wrong with her?"

"Nothing, except you embarrassed one of the scariest women in the entire village, and Neko-san isn't far down that list by the way, and lived to tell anyone about it." Kakashi looked up and around the park with his one shifty eye as if he was expecting Anko to pop out of nowhere and separate their heads from their bodies for even discussing this.

"Really? Sure she may overreact sometimes, but I don't think she's that bad. I have a feeling we come from similar backgrounds, though I don't know why. It's not like she's a Jinchuuriki." Naruto murmured while he was deep in thought. Kakashi looked at the blonde with an appraising eye.

_You have no idea how close you hit that nail on the head, kid. One doesn't have to be a Jinchuuriki in this village to be hated by most of the populace. Perhaps seeing more of this kid will do you some good, Anko-san._

"Naruto-kun!"

"Onii-san!"

Two familiar voices reached the men from the other side of the park. Both looked up to see Hinata and Hanabi walking onto the park from the street toward them, bright smiles on their faces. Naruto flashed a bright smile and waved at them.

Hanabi looked about the same with her long and perfectly straight black hair going down to the middle of her back and wearing a simple black training outfit. However, Hinata seemed to have grown cuter with her indigo hair having now grown longer past her shoulders and her outfit became slightly less bulky with a new light blue overcoat that wasn't as baggy as her fur-lined pink overcoat. Her smile shone even more brilliantly upon finally seeing Naruto after three months.

Kakashi noticed a barely visible tinge of red on the blonde's cheeks as he looked specifically at Hinata. He didn't need his Sharingan to see the bright red cheeks on Hinata as the girls stopped and stood at a distance in polite deference to Kakashi and Naruto's privacy unless invited. He allowed a hidden grin under his mask. Naruto stood up but he seemed to have a thought as he started whispering.

"Oi...before they overhear, you said women secretly think a lot more about men than they would like to admit when it comes to sex. They just hide it better than men could. What about Hyuuga women? I figured they wouldn't care about any of this since they seem to be raised a bit differently."

Immediately, Kakashi thought back to several flings he had with Hyuuga women when he was younger. The main similarity between these Hyuugas was that they were all insatiable and kinky. Especially when he had two of them at the same time. Thank Kami he learned the **Kage Bunshin** jutsu by then. Grinning, Kakashi ruffled Naruto's hair, much to the blonde's chagrin.

"I wouldn't know." he lied smoothly. "I guess that's for you to find out if you have a Hyuuga woman after you in the future. Now go and be a kid. I'll leave you to it." Kakashi spoke as he stood up and waved goodbye to everyone before disappearing in a **Shunshin **with one final thought.

_Kami really has blessed you if you already have the Hyuuga heiress' interest. There's going to be a lot of kinky stuff for you in the future. I'm so jealous! I'll have to ask Jiraiya-sama to keep an eye on you for potential research material. _

**Some time later during the third academy year**

"So what happened here, Naruto-kun?" the Sandaime Hokage slowly and evenly spoke as he rubbed his eyes with his thumb and index finger. He was standing in full Hokage outfit in front of an obviously embarrassed and distraught Naruto with Kakashi standing next to him. The silver-haired Jounin was quietly surveying the chaotic scene still going on behind Naruto with an amused smirk hidden behind his facemask. They were standing outside next to a badly damaged section of the Shinobi Academy. Distraught and frazzled students were everywhere. Chunin, jounin, and ANBU were running around doing damage control.

"Um...well, you see...I should have realized it was a drill. Now that I think about it, there would be no way enemy nin could have gotten this far into Konoha to invade the Academy without us at least being warned in advance." Naruto shifted his eyes everywhere without directly looking at Kakashi's and the Hokage's gaze as he talked.

"Go on. What did you do when you realized it was an 'invasion'?" the Third encouraged. Naruto let out a sigh.

"I immediately got the drop on the guy that entered our room threatening to kill someone. He didn't even see it coming."

As if on a cue, a chunin dressed in a basic enemy ninja outfit was carried by the trio on a stretcher, moaning in pain about a broken arm and ankle.

"Then, after making sure that guy was disabled, I immediately attacked the next guy about to enter another room nearby in the hallway."

Another stretcher went by, a veteran genin on it holding his ribs gingerly while cursing a certain blonde kid loudly.

"Finally, I pounced on the third guy who was coming out of another room with a 'hostage' in his arm."

A stretcher passed by once again. This time with a chunin with signs of a severe concussion.

"After that, I immediately came face to face with three guys with kunai in their hands. Before I even realized it, I was going through hand seals for my **Daitoppa** justu. That's how this wall behind me blew out." Naruto finished while pointing a thumb over his shoulder at the scene as people searched through the rubble for the three poor nin caught in Naruto's jutsu.

"While you technically did everything right as if this was an actual invasion, I have to admit your reaction was a bit extreme for an academy student. Is there a reason for that?"

"Ero-sennin and Kakashi-sensei drilled into my head that no reaction to a sudden and unfavorable situation is too big. Better to be safe than sorry if I performed an underwhelming counterattack. I'm really sorry about this, Hokage-sama. I'll be more careful next time and try to think before acting." Naurto guiltily said as he bowed his head. Sarutobi glanced at Kakashi, who stiffened at being pointed out as being responsible for Naruto's current mindset.

"Thank you. There won't be any punishment from this. It's my fault I approved this drill without sufficient preparation beforehand. You may go join your classmates until you're dismissed." the Third commanded. Naruto bowed again and walked off toward a group of frazzled students. Their hair was a mess from him using the **Daitoppa** jutsu indoors, especially Hinata's, and they had stunned looks from hearing that a ten-year-old decimated six active shinobi in minutes. Kakashi and the Hokage watched and smiled as Naruto's friends jumped on him with loud questions. They were a little concerned when they noticed Uchiha Sasuke was standing some distance away from the group, glaring hatefully at Naruto.

"So..." Kakashi drawled out.

"Don't say it or you'll regret it." the Hokage ordered firmly.

"It's got to be said, Hokage-sama. I knew this would happen the moment you brought this proposal up at the last Jounin meeting."

"How was I supposed to know he would react like that? It was supposed to raise the students' awareness that not everything is safe and sound where it should be, like here at the academy."

"I'd say it worked. You just forgot to account for the Naruto factor. Thankfully the students did not see everything clearly in the chaos so all most of them knew was that he simply used a jutsu an academy student should not know and they still do not know the full extent of his abilities. Hopefully this'll blow over. Oh, I made a pun!" Kakashi lazily exclaimed with a giggle at the Hokage's eye roll. "Though I'm concerned about that Uchiha's behavior toward Naruto as of late and I think it'll intensify again after today."

"Not much we can do that about while they're still civilians. We'll let the boys work it out if they have to. Since you've so clearly disobeyed my orders on calling me out on my admittedly poor decision and you were responsible for training Naruto to react like that, I assume you will repent for this by picking up the bill for the damages." the Third said almost good-humoredly. Kakashi's one eye widened for a moment before he shrugged.

"Bah. Still worth it and I'm filthy rich from all the S-rank missions I took as an ANBU. It's a small price to pay for telling my powerful and wise leader 'I told you so'."

**Two weeks before Naruto's departure for his third training trip**

It was a quiet moonlit night in Konoha as the village started up its nightlife activities. A certain purple-haired seventeen-year-old female chunin was already ahead most of the night crowd with her fifth cup of warm sake as she sat at the worn counter in a somewhat shady bar located in the seedier part of the village. Already starting to feel the buzz, she stared at the small crowd in the bar and frowned slightly as she watched groups of friends chatting and laughing together. She let out a barely noticeable but dejected sigh.

Mitarashi Anko had a terrible year. If she thought her life would improve with time when people hopefully had newer things to worry about rather than focus on Orochimaru's betrayal five years ago, she was dead wrong. Just as many people still remember that traitor now as they did the day he left the village and she was the unfortunate scapegoat. She's constantly had people curse her, spit in her face, and tried to sabotage and undermine her efforts on any job she did. Not to add the fact that they thought she should be a whore and on her knees to please every man in the village right this minute.

She was glad to be done with the chunin patrols. While she didn't have to worry about being stuck with the same people on a team for long periods of time like she had to when she was a genin, she was reminded that many more people had no faith in her and automatically disliked her as soon as her name was heard. She was surprised that, in several weeks, she'd be given a chance by Morino Ibiki to work in his Torture and Intelligence department without any special condition on her part. She was actually treated like a regular person by the one man who would have had every legitimate reason to suspect her of any traitorous behavior since that was his job.

Anko scoffed at that thought. Her social isolation was so bad she actually had to be suspicious that someone other than her surrogate older sister, Yugao, and her best friend, Kurenai, treated her decently. She remembered the blonde kid she last saw a year ago and smiled at how nice he was to her, even when she played at trying to kill him for accidentally ruining her dango. Her smile darkened a little as she reminded herself that he did not know about her past and that was why he was still nice to her. Imagining that blonde's mistrusting face actually hurt her more than she expected since meeting him always seemed to brighten her mood each time. She hoped that if there was still a next time she met him, he would still be ignorant about her past so she could see the bright smile and sparkling blue eyes again.

Ordering another drink, she noticed a group of three unsavory male chunin sitting in a corner booth nearby. She had to suppress her disgusted shivering as she practically felt their eyes roaming over every single inch of her body. She saw one of the men leer at her as if he was planning to make her his tonight. Once again, she cursed her good looks. If she was going to be a scapegoat for that snake bastard's betrayal, she should've at least been ugly and inconspicuous so she could slip under the radar more easily.

"Hey snake bitch, how much to give me and my friends a good time?" the same man who gave her the leer earlier suddenly appeared at her side, his sick smile plastered across his face. Anko cursed loudly at her lost peace before she gave him a cold glare.

"If that's the best pick-up line you can come up with, I feel sorry for you. Also, kindly fuck off and die. You're ruining the taste of this sake with your stink." she growled as she took out several of her senbon to make her point.

"Whoa...I don't know why you would be so sensitive. I didn't think snake whores had feelings." the man leered again before laughing uproariously as if he just told a hilarious joke. Having no patience, Anko twirled in her seat to press the points of her senbon to the suddenly frowning man's neck.

"Listen here, you worthless trash. Even if I was desperate enough to fuck around as so many of you seem to believe, I can and will find much better men than you or any of your friends. Even if you're standing all the way over in Kumo, I'd still want you even farther away before I start feeling clean again. Now leave me alone and let me drink in peace before I actually push these senbon through your neck and leave you permanently paralyzed and, believe me when I say this, I have absolutely no problem with doing that." Anko spoke evenly in a quiet voice so as not to attract unneeded attention; her glare promising she'd go through with her threat. The man, now angry, silently backed off and gave her one more glare before slowly walking back to his friends. Anko sighed and turned back to her sake. Her mood, which had been briefly brightened by remembering that blonde's smile and eyes, took a turn for the worst again.

"Whew. She sure put you down hard." one of the chunin cracked up when the man returned from being shot down by Anko.

"I don't know why that bitch keeps her legs closed together so tightly. You'd think after being with that snake bastard, she'd be easy, but no, she had to pretend to be a decent woman and make it hard on us men. Why does that snake bastard only get to have that nice and curvy body while she's denying the rest of us?" the first chunin grumbled.

"In any case, I think we're going to 'help' her loosen up tonight, especially her legs. I spoke with the bartender and paid him quite a 'fee' to put something in her sake. He said it'll take effect in about an hour. We'll just bid our time until then." the third chunin interjected. The first chunin smirked with sick anticipation. The second chunin wasn't as receptive of the plan.

"Wait...that's illegal. What if the bartender turns us in for trying to bribe him?"

"Don't worry, he's a friend of mine and he hates that bitch as much we do. We're finally going to get a piece of that amazing body and no one's going to care about her afterward. There'll be no backlash for us. What have you got to lose?" the third spoke in a serious tone, indicating he won't take no for an answer from the second chunin. They were all in this together now and there would be no backing out. The second chunin knew this and relented with a nod. The other two men grinned as they turned to watch Anko drink another cup of sake. The bartender gave the men a barely discernible hand sign before walking off.

**About an hour later on the other side of Konoha at Ichiraku ramen stand**

"That's the stuff!" Naruto declared as he polished off his tenth bowl of ramen.

"Even though your sensei's being a meanie restricting your ramen intake, you're certainly making up for it on your two trips here per week." Ayame teased with a giggle as she leaned on the counter across from the blonde sitting on his usual stool.

"Yep, sensei's such a meanie. Keep on telling me how much of a meanie she is being right now, Ayame-nee." Naruto encouraged with a grin knowing Kurama heard that.

_**You do remember I'm right here in your head, don't you? I heard everything. **_Kurama spoke up with an annoyed tone.

_Really. No way. I totally forgot about that. _Naruto replied in monotone.

_**I think you just earned yourself a **_B**ijuudama _up your ass tonight when you come into our mindscape. _**the fox sounded serious about it too. Naruto just inwardly shrugged. As long as he didn't die from it, he'd take anything the fox dished out.

_**Damn it. I remember I could scare you shitless with just my presence alone. Where have the days gone? **_

Naruto ignored the fox's grumblings and paid for his meal then said goodbye to Ayame, who was now closing up. He slowly made his way back, enjoying the moon and the silence on these empty streets. It wasn't long before he suddenly stopped cold in his tracks. He felt a strange presence in the air, and he could feel his body wanting to go find the source of this odd presence, as if it was tugging at him.

_Kurama-sensei, something's wrong. I can feel something in the air. I can't explain what it is but it's familiar to me. _

Naruto winced upon hearing a roar of excitement from the giant fox in his head. He then felt her pacing back and forth on all fours, her tails thrashing around excitedly.

_**That's my chakra and, what's more, it has the Yang essence! I can feel the chakra's physical properties. I have no idea how my chakra from before I was sealed into you is still around, but we're not going to pass this up. You must get it! However, I can feel something tainting it a little. We need to go collect it before it gets worse. **_

Naruto jumped up to the rooftops and immediately started running in the direction of the presence he was feeling.

_I hate to rain down on your excitement, but even I can tell there isn't much of your chakra wherever it is. It may not do anything. _

_**It's still worth a try. Just remember my chakra is very potent, even in small quantities. Just get there and we'll find out how we can obtain it. **_

**Back with Anko a few minutes earlier**

_How could I be so stupid? I got too cocky and I'm now paying for it. _Anko berated herself as she held on to a wall along the street she was walking on between the bar and her apartment. She knew the men were trying to drug her and even prepared her body for immunity to whatever they may have slipped to her. Why throw away some perfectly good sake? It wasn't the first time unsavory men tried this on her. She always enjoyed seeing the looks of confusion and rage when their plans didn't work. What she didn't expect was for this drug to be even more potent than the average run-of-the-mill rape drug. While she would recover from this soon thanks to her higher immunity than an average human, it still left her weak for now and that was all these men needed. Panting, she turned and glared hatefully at the three men hovering around her like wolves waiting for their prey to show a moment of weakness.

To make the matter worse, her curse mark was flaring up, nearly paralyzing her body with blinding pain. If it was just the drug, she'd be able to fight the men off easily enough but combined with the curse seal acting up she was more helpless than a newborn baby. Why did the curse mark have to act up for the first time in five years, and tonight of all time?

"What's wrong, snake bitch? Need our help getting you home? Or maybe you'd like to come with us to one of our places instead?" the first chunin innocently asked with a leer. The other two chunin stayed back, out of the kunoichi's range. Anko growled and took out her senbon and threw a few handfuls at the men. They were aimed badly and thrown with little power so the three chunin had no trouble dodging them before moving in closer to surround her.

"Just calm down and enjoy yourself. It'll be over quickly and you can get back to your life. I don't see why you have to make it difficult for us to enjoy what we deserve. You might even find this a turn-on." the first chunin spoke as if he knew what Anko needed. Before Anko could try to throw one more handful of senbon, the man's face flashed with anger before dashing in to bury a fist deep in Anko's stomach. Anko grunted in pain and collasped to all fours throwing up whatever was in her stomach, the pain from her curse mark intensifying.

"Stop trying to make things difficult for us. You were that snake bastard's bitch so you're lower than trash. You don't even deserve to lick the high heels of the red-district's whores. You should be happy we're actually giving you this much attention."

Anko laughed bitterly through the pain in her stomach and from the curse mark. She knew she couldn't fight them off any more. She decided on the next best thing; get them enraged so they'd accidentally knock her out.

"Fuck you. Do whatever you want. Just know Orochimaru ruined the rest of men for me. You will never ever hear me moan out anything especially with your tiny dicks that not even the red-district whores will give a single lick for all the money you have on you." Anko lied through her teeth. She hated having to use her traitorous sensei's name in such a way but it seemed to be what pissed them off the most. She hoped to Kami she'd be unconscious long enough to last through being forced to give up her first time to such disgusting men.

The insult almost worked as it enraged the third chunin into kicking her hard in the stomach. The pain was nearly enough to knock her out but she needed a couple more. Unfortunately for her, the first chunin caught on to what she was trying and held the third chunin back. Smirking, the first chunin bent down to his knees and grabbed Anko's chin forcefully to make her look level with his eyes. Her eyes burned with hate and murder.

"I see what you were trying to do. Unfortunately for you, I want to make sure you remember everything. I still don't see why you're still fighting so hard. It's not like this is your first time."

Anko cursed herself because she flinched a tiny bit at that statement. The first chunin caught this and went wide-eyed.

"Wait! You mean to tell me you've never fucked anyone before? Oh, that's rich! We got lucky tonight, guys! This is a bona fide virgin!" the man announced to the men, who showed their appreciation for the luck by grinning wider.

"I guess we'll have to be the ones with the honor of ruining the rest of the men for you then. Maybe if you're lucky and pay us next time, we'll actually do it again. But tonight's going to be free for you!" the first chunin said gleefully as he nodded at the men to help him pick her up and carry her into a secluded alleyway nearby. She couldn't even try to bite anyone as the pain from her curse mark increased. The only thing she could hope for is that the pain continued to pick up and it'd kill her before the men started anything. She could feel the men already starting to grope at her and shivered in disgust. She will never forgive that snake bastard for betraying everyone and leaving her to take his place. She made plans to kill the men doing this to her afterward and then she'd hunt that man down or die trying.

They dumped her unceremoniously up against a wall far enough into the alley that no one from the streets could see them and they unzipped her chunin flak jacket and peeled it off. One man slowly cut her tight t-shirt open with a kunai, exposing her purple-laced bra barely holding her large breasts in. The men grinned with sick pleasure as they reached for them. Anko could do nothing but allow her tears to form. Why did this have to happen to her? She didn't deserve any of this. As she tried to tune out everything in hope of suppressing this horrible experience, her eyes jolted wide open as she heard something unexpected.

"Oi! What the hell do you think you're doing to one of my friends, you bastards?" a boy's voice called out from the street, which stopped the men cold in their track. They raised their heads as one and looked at the alley's entrance to see a lone blonde-haired boy glaring at them with icy blue eyes. Their shocked faces twisted into anger at being interrupted. Anko knew something was going on but the pain from her curse mark was making it hard for her to concentrate on the new person's voice and she couldn't see who this was from where she was sitting. The pain got to be too much so she allowed herself to fall into unconsciousness, hoping to Kami the new voice was friendly.

"Beat it, demon brat! We're giving this one a good time since she was practically begging for it." one of the chunin sneered at the blonde.

"Really? Doesn't look that way to me. It looks to me like you're beating her up because that's the only way you're going to get any action. I mean, look at your faces. Not even your mothers would love them."

The men became enraged. If there was one thing they hated more than snake bitches, it was this demon brat. They would not allow his insults to go unheeded. They all ran as one down the alley at the lone boy, intending to take him out for good.

_This seemed like a good idea at that time. Now I have three angry chunin bearing down on me. _

_**Three angry and drunk chunin. You can do this. Just make them pay for making that woman suffer! If I have to pick one thing I hate about humanity, it's the rapists. And you humans call us monsters. **_

_Yeah, and I'm sorry on behalf of decent humans everywhere. I'll break these bastards down. _

The blonde started avoiding their clumsy punches and kicks when the chunin reached the boy. He was going to use their rage against them. He waited for an opportunity and he saw it when the first chunin almost overextended himself on a badly aimed punch, but it was all Naruto needed. The blonde easily grabbed the wrist in a vice-like grip and twisted it around to lock it up at the elbow, making the man cry out in discomfort. Still holding on to his arm, Naruto stepped in to deliver a vicious upward palm strike directly to the elbow, shattering it and tearing up the tendons, making the arm bend unnaturally upward. The man, reeling from the pain and shock of seeing his own arm bend in the opposite direction of it where it was supposed to go, did not even notice Naruto doing a hard foot stomp on one of the man's knees, shattering it. This made the man fall down to his only good knee, still in dazed shock. The man finally felt all the pain from his broken elbow and knee rushing into him, shaking him out of his shocked haze. He was about to scream shrilly in unbearable agony when Naruto decided to give him sweet unconsciousness by slamming his head sideways into the nearby alley's wall with a hard push.

Naruto smoothly stepped over the unconscious man's body to engage the two men standing still in shock at the brutality a ten-year-old boy inflicted on their friend. One of them snapped out of it and he saw the blonde glaring up at him, his icy blue eyes simmering with vengeance in the moonlight. Instinctively, the second man took out a kunai and tried to slash at the boy wildly. The boy easily sidestepped the swipe, the blade sparkling as it hit the alley's wall next to the boy. Naruto took this chance by whirling into a roundhouse kick that smashed the man's wrist against the wall, shattering it into a million pieces and making him drop the kunai. The boy deftly grabbed the kunai out of the air and whirled around again to smash its knobbed end into the man's ribs, knocking the air out of him before he could scream in pain and forcing him to his knees, clutching at his chest with his one good arm. Dropping the kunai, Naruto grabbed the man's head by the hair and pulled him into a punishing knee blow to the nose. As blood exploded from the man's broken nose, Naruto forced the dazed man's head up to level a gaze with him.

"After this, it'll take a lot of work just to be able to throw any weapon straight with that hand of yours. Just remember you brought this on yourself." the boy's tone was as cold as his eyes. The man's eyes widened as the boy quickly slammed both his hands on the man's temples as if he was using a pair of cymbals. The man was already unconscious before he even started to fall limply to the ground at Naruto's feet. The blonde looked over at the final chunin.

"You're the leader, aren't you? I bet you're the one who started this." Naruto spoke evenly as he trained his cold eyes on the lone man. The man was jolted out of his shock and snarled angrily at the boy.

"You! Of course a demon spawn would protect someone like that bitch!"

The boy narrowed his eyes.

"She's my friend. Of course I would protect her and she hasn't done anything wrong."

The man let out a crazed laugh.

"You didn't know, huh? This woman worked for Orochimaru before he betrayed the village and this whore left with him! Only for her to come back three years later like it was nothing and she had the gall to go ahead and become a nin for the same village she betrayed! I don't know what they were thinking allowing her near this village's secrets as it's obvious she'd pass them down to her master eventually. She deserves everything we're going to do to her!"

Naruto stood there stunned. He always knew there was something similar between Anko and him. But for their situations to be so similar like being hated by the village for something they had no control over, being mistrusted constantly, and having to work for each and every person's respect, among other things. Naruto shook his head to look back at the man with determined eyes.

"You're an idiot then. If that was true, the Hokage would never have allowed her into the shinobi force. There's a reason he's the Hokage and you're just a pathetic lowly thirty-something chunin clinging to his petty hatred."

"How dare you, you fucking demon?! I'll make sure they have your head for this! They'll never believe a demon's words against mine!"

"First of all, I'm not the Kyuubi. Get that right, moron. By the way, the fox inside me thinks you're worse than trash. That you don't even deserve to be a one-celled slime. How do you like hearing that from a real demon?" Naruto said with a sadistic grin. The man growled as if he was offended at being considered worse than even the Kyuubi itself!

"Second of all, they won't have to believe my words. The ANBU up there will take care of that for me." the blonde pointed a thumb upward, directing the man's gaze up to see a boar-masked ANBU sticking to one of the alley's walls with chakra as the new arrival watched the scene impassively.

"You...you're going to help this demon against me?"

The ANBU continued to watch everything as if he wasn't being addressed.

"It's useless. He saw everything since I've arrived. Benefit of having a detail on me for 'my safety' though I'm sure he'd think I don't need to have guards on me any more after tonight. He knows you three were the ones in the wrong. I imagine he'd only jump in if I actually tried to kill any one of you. Frankly, I think death is too good for any of you. I really despise people who hurt my friends so I'll have you all survive this so you'd have your assholes reamed by large burly men in prison. I hear they don't like rapists."

The man didn't reply, instead opting to take a kunai out and went for the kill against the blonde, his vision red with rage. Naruto sighed at this being too easy before creating a shadow clone. Both of them quickly jumped up to their own walls with chakra in their feet and ran toward the man at full speed. The man was so shocked by a ten-year-old being able to do this that he just stopped and stared wide-eyed at the two approaching blondes. Upon reaching the man, the original jumped off and slammed a clawed hand into the man's face while the clone jumped at the man's stomach with a full-force flying kick, burying the foot deep into the stomach. Using the momentum from their powerful attacks, both Narutos forced the man off his feet and he flew backward at high speed. The clone then dispelled in mid-air, its job done. The man flew a long distance down the alleyway, passing over Anko's disabled body on the way, before he crashed hard into the wall at the dead end. The man knew a lot of the bones in his body were broken on impact. Wailing in pain and shock as he slowly tried to force himself up into a sitting position, he felt the boy walk up to him and stand still at his splayed feet. Deciding he'd give the boy a defiant glare, he looked up only to nearly piss his pants in fright.

Standing over the man, Naruto was casting a pitch black silhouette with the bright moon behind him. His spiky hair was making him look like he had a pair of demon's horns but what terrified the man the most was the boy's glowing red eyes. They weren't blue like before. These eyes glowed with such intensity that they promised the man would see hell in them. Despite his broken bones, the man was shaking violently before this boy's overbearing presence. The boy forcefully wrapped a hand around the man's mouth and gripped his cheeks to pull him in closer making the man's body scream in pain at being moved roughly.

"Know this, scum. If you manage to get out of prison despite every man there trying their best to have you swinging for your own team, I will know every thought you have. If you ever think of going after any helpless woman, or even leer at one by accident, I will find you and I will make you regret it." the boy growled as he leaned in closer, his glowing eyes growing even brighter. At this point, the terrified man pissed his pants and fell unconscious. The blonde let go of him and the last chunin fell to the side.

Inwardly, Naruto was laughing.

_You're right, Kurama-sensei! Channeling chakra into my eyes not only improved my night vision, it made them glow red! I'm surprised I didn't notice this before._

_**Well, now you know. Imagine using this against enemy shinobi in darkness. Just the psychological impact ****alone will help you win battles easily. An**_**yway, **_**I wish you made these scums suffer more, but hearing their bones breaking, especially the tendons tearing in that man's elbow, was music to my ears. You humans are pathetically fragile but you make good sounds. **_Kurama punctuated this with a sinister grin.

_Glad to be of service, sensei. Though I should tell you that your evilness is leaking out a little._

_**Oh whoopsie. I just don't know how to control that sometimes. **_Kurama deadpanned.

Naruto heard the soft thud of a pair of feet landing on the alley's ground behind him. He turned around to face the ANBU that was watching over the scene.

"Am I in trouble, Boar-san?"

Boar shrugged his shoulders.

"These men deserve worse and they'll get it from Morino-san. Even if she was new to his department, no one messes with his subordinates and gets away with it. I'll have to report this to Hokage-sama, however."

"That's fine. I'll gladly take any punishment if there's going to be one. It's a small price to pay for this."

"I have to say I'm surprised a ten-year-old boy even knew what these bastards were about to do, let alone what men in prisons do to each other."

Naruto shrugged.

"In case you hadn't noticed, my life so far wasn't exactly filled with childhood innocence and naivety. It also helped when a perverted silver-haired jounin explained every single thing in every single detail, and suddenly, all the double entendres and vague conversations I've heard in passing about anything relating to more adult subjects made sense."

The young boy's numb nonchalance at his previous treatment and mature knowledge made even the hardened ANBU flinch but he recovered quickly. He nodded before turning toward the unconscious woman as he picked up her discarded chunin flak jacket and carefully put it back on and zipped it up so it would cover her exposed chest. Naruto had to look away with a slight blush as this went on.

"She looks unharmed though she'd complain about losing her shirt and the bruises on her stomach tomorrow. I have to go get my squad to pick up the trash. Would it be alright if I ask you to take her home tonight? She's in no condition to answer any question and she just needs a good night's sleep so it makes no sense to have her remain here when we could just come by for her report tomorrow. She doesn't live too far from here."

Naruto nodded his consent and picked up her surprisingly light body to drape over his back. Because of his shorter stature, her feet were dragging lightly against the ground. He was thankful she was wearing her heavily padded flak jacket or his face would be bright red with her large breasts pressed against his back. Getting the address from the ANBU, the blonde set off for her apartment. On the way, he was deep in thought as Anko instinctively tightened her arms around his neck and snuggled her cheek against the boy's soft hair.

_So we get to where we felt your chakra only to find three men attacking Anko-san here. Was that a coincidence or did what happened just now have something to do with your chakra suddenly flaring up? _

_**I think it's somewhere on this woman's body because the chakra died down just when she fell unconscious. I can still feel a small trace of it in her body now that she's close to you. **_

_I wonder why she would willingly have it somewhere on her body. Your chakra burns everyone except me. _

_**One of the bastards said she was associated with Orochimaru. The one who likes to experiment on humans. If she was dumped by Orochimaru like these men said, it's easy enough to deduce that he did some experiments on her and tried something with my chakra just to see what it could do. Again, I wonder why I'm the 'evil' one when you humans have someone like that thing**_**_running around. _**

_You think that hebi-teme may have forced it on her somehow? Then that means there's a seal somewhere. That's the only way I can think of that would have your chakra co-exist within a normal human's body. And this isn't a very good seal because she certainly was in a lot of pain before falling unconscious when we still sensed your chakra. This raises a question. How the hell did that snake get his hand on your chakra? Was anyone even able to collect it?_

_**We'll figure that out sooner or later. Back to the matter at hand, you know what we need to do, Naruto. We'll have to search for the seal and break it to absorb my chakra into your body. My old chakra will be naturally attracted to my presence so you will need to channel my chakra into her body and the best way to do that is to bite her on the seal with my chakra active. It's not a gentle or even probably the best method but we need this to get stronger. If not for our sake, then to absolve this woman of any further suffering. **_

_Yeah, though I'm sure Jiji-san will be pissed at me and then Ero-sennin will pummel me into nothingness after this for doing something so reckless without enough preparation. Let's get her home first. _

**Apartment of Anko and Yugao a few minutes later**

Naruto gingerly opened the front door and sighed in relief to find the apartment empty. He searched around for a light switch before turning it on to show a surprisingly well-decorated living room.

_I wouldn't mind living here compared to the shithole we live in. _

_**Focus. Put her down on that sofa and we'll get started. **_

_We'd better hurry. From the photos on the wall, Anko-san lives with another person. I'd hate to have to explain why I was doing various things to Anko-san if she walks in on us. _

Naruto quickly and gently laid her down on the sofa. He had a little bit of trouble when Anko wouldn't let go of her grip around his neck, hungrily grasping for any close contact she could get. As soon as she let go, she started to wail and groan in pain as she started to clutch uselessly at a certain spot on her neck. Naruto and Kurama also felt the familiar presence of the fox's chakra intensify again. Confused, Naruto looked at where Anko was clutching at and saw a small piece of a seal. Immediately, he had a clone pop into existence to hold Anko down while he unzipped Anko's Chunin flak jacket just enough to reveal three tomoes surrounded by an odd circle of intricate seals.

_I've never seen the three tomoes part, but I know that circle. One of the books I read calls it the _**Evil Sealing Method **_technique. It must've been put in place to keep the seal from acting up depending on the user's willpower. Whatever these guys did to weaken her earlier tonight must have also weakened her willpower enough to have this seal flare up high enough for us to sense it. That's why we never noticed this when we met her before now. Unfortunately for Anko-san I'll have to remove this barrier to allow us access to your chakra. It'll hurt her badly for a few minutes until we finally get your chakra out of her. _

_**Something tells me she wouldn't mind if she could be rid of this afterward. **_

Naruto nodded inwardly as he remembered the details of the **Evil Sealing Method **technique from the books. It was a pain to set up, requiring an entire room to write seals on the floor with the person at the center. However, in comparison, it was shockingly simple to dispel the seal. All he needed to do was to go through several special hand seals as a 'password' before channeling a lot of chakra into the barrier to break it. Usually a good seal master would invent his or her own 'password' with their own seals but he didn't think that was the case here. However, before he could start, he created four clones to have them go around the living room, closing doors and windows before they took some papers from Naruto to draw some seals. Before long, the clones slapped a seal on each of the room's four walls, effectively keeping everything that happened in the room from getting out. Sound, sight, smell, and more importantly, chakra. No one outside would be able to detect whatever was happening, and Naruto would need that for what was coming up.

_**Before we begin, I want to make sure you're not feeling forced to do this. While we need the chakra inside this woman's body to make it easier for you to control my chakra, we can wait for another way of obtaining my Yang-infused chakra now that we know it can still exist. There's also a small chance we may not succeed in retrieving the chakra and make things worse for this woman.**_

_I feel like we're invading Anko-san's privacy doing this and she may hate me after this, but I just can't stand to see her suffering like this. _Naruto thought as he watched Anko continue to whimper and cry out as if she was having a horrible nightmare. He hadn't realized he was holding one of the woman's hands to try to comfort her. Naruto furrowed his brows in determination after a minute of consideration.

_I'm willing to take the chance and I think we need to do this. I don't care if we don't get the chakra. As long as she can be free of this awful seal, I'd be happy no matter how Anko-san would react after this. _

Kurama nodded in understanding before she got back to business.

_**Naruto. Remove that flak jacket. It's going to get in the way. **_

_W-w-what?! She's practically naked under that! After tonight, the last thing she needs is another guy to see her like this!_

_**Forget about modesty. This is more important to both us and her. I'm sure she'll forgive you afterward if this works. **_

Grumbling, Naruto relented and peeled the jacket off with the help of his clones. All Narutos were sporting red cheeks at seeing Anko in her beautiful purple-laced bra. After getting over their initial awkwardness, Naruto had two of his clones keep her propped up as he stood behind her, preparing to remove the barrier. Slowly clapping his hands together in seals, he molded the chakra necessary and slapped a palm to Anko's mark. Naruto could feel something underneath his hand disappear and he removed it to reveal just the three tomoes this time.

Immediately, Anko screamed to the high heaven in unbearable pain and involuntarily thrashed around so much she accidentally dispelled the two clones holding her up. Naruto could see the three tomoes expanding outward and began to turn into sinister-looking marks that were slowly spreading down her back.

_**Naruto, do it now! Channel some of my chakra into your mouth and bite down on the mark hard! **_

Not having any time to think, Naruto immediately grabbed the thrashing Anko from behind to keep her in place and pulled her head to the side with a hand tightly gripping her purple hair, exposing her neck. As his mouth started to grow fangs upon channeling Kurama's chakra into it, he bit down hard on Anko's neck where the mark was. Anko immediately stopped her thrashing and opened her eyes and mouth wide with a gasp and she sat stock still. Tasting a little bit of her blood going into his mouth, Naruto could feel his own charka slowly going into the seal. He could feel the chakra destroy whatever was tainting the fox's old chakra before he started to absorb the chakra with both Yang and Ying essences into his own body. This all happened in a span of few seconds but it felt like days to Naruto. As soon as he felt the last of the fox's chakra leave Anko's body, he quickly took his mouth off her neck. He saw the three tomoes start to break apart and disappeared off Anko's skin. Anko's eyes closed as she let out a relieved whimper and fell back against Naruto unconscious, now completely still and breathing evenly. He wasn't sure she was even actually awake when he bit her. He had to allow another blush when Anko instinctively turned around in his arms looking for comfort and wrapped her arms around his neck, pressing her bountiful breasts against his chest and nuzzling her nose in the nape of his neck. Stuttering, he had to ask the other two giggling clones to carefully pry her off him. Smiling at his success despite the recklessness, he and the clones laid the purple-haired chunin on the sofa and found a blanket nearby to drape over her, preserving her modesty.

_**Now, quickly get out of here and get home. That was the easy part. You just took on my pure and unfiltered chakra with both Yin and Yang essences. My chakra has always been somewhat diluted by the seal before it went into your body and it will hurt like hell when the chakra you just got starts to merge with your body. You'll wish you'd die but you won't be able to. However, after this, your body should now be adapted to the new Yang essence if it all works out. Hopefully when you channel some of my chakra it'll automatically trigger an actual transformation. Even I don't know what kind of changes that'll effect so it's an uncharted territory for us both from here on. Now that I know my old chakra can still exist, it's imperative we look for more of it. The more Yang essence you take in, the better the effect this will have on your transformations. That's my theory, anyway. **_

Naruto nodded before he started to feel a twinge of pain in his chest. Sighing, he ordered his two remaining clones to help him take down the seals. Just as they were about to leave the place, Naruto turned at the doorway to look at Anko one more time. He smiled when he saw Anko was sleeping peacefully but whimpered slightly for the physical contact she had from earlier. Before he could turn around to leave, he suddenly collapsed at the doorway, his entire body shaking in growing pain spreading out from his chest.

"Boss! What's wrong?!" one of the clones cried as they went to his side.

"Get me home! I need to get there before this gets worse or I leave myself open for anything in the meantime!" Naruto ordered through gritted teeth. Nodding to each other, both clones picked up Naruto by his arms and disappeared in a **Shunshin. **

**Naruto's apartment**

Upon arriving, the clones dropped Naruto to the floor as his entire body thrashed around in pain as if was on fire. The white-hot fire of hell, too.

"Put...the...seal...up!" the original forced through pained pants. The clones quickly obeyed and within seconds, his entire living room was encased in a privacy barrier. At that point, the clones dispelled and he allowed himself to scream like there was no tomorrow, his chakra leaking from all over his body. All Kurama could do was offer soothing words for his fading consciousness.

**Next morning**

Naruto shifted his body, sprawled out on the living room floor, as he forced his heavy eyelids open, only to groan in annoyance when the morning sunlight shone into his eyes from a window nearby.

"Oh fuck me. That was NOT pleasant." Naruto grumbled as he tried to stretch only to flinch with pain all over his body.

_**Naruto, you're ok! I was a little worried there for a minute. **_Kurama's voice suddenly spoke up.

_I still feel like crap, but looks like I survived my first shot of your chakra. I even feel a bit different too. _

_**Really? Where? I wasn't expecting the effects to be that immediate. **_

_I'm not sure. I just know I feel a bit sharper and more clear in the head. _Naruto murmured in his head as he draped an arm over his head to block the sunlight from the window. He enjoyed the feeling of soft fur on his forehead. Wait a minute. Soft fur?

Naruto quickly removed his arm to look at it in full view. Suddenly his mind went into numb shock as he stared intensely at his arm. More specifically, his forearm all the way down to his fingertips. His arm was normal up to that point. After that, it slowly became orange-red fur all the way down to his fingertips, now sharpened into claws. Bringing his hand up in front of his face to flex it, showing incredibly defined muscles even underneath all the fur, there was only one thought for both the blonde and the demon fox inside him.

_Holy shit!_/_**Holy shit!**_

Immediately afterward, there was a loud knocking at the front door. Naruto flinched and turned his head toward the offending door.

_Oh shit!/**Oh shit!**_

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**Now, to be honest, the last thing I wanted to do is to frustrate readers who waited a long time for a new chapter in this series with a cliffhanger, but I felt this is ****necessary for the next chapter which will come much sooner this time. **

**And to answer any question about Kurama's chakra being in Anko's curse seal, remember, this was a prototype seal in canon as Orochimaru experimented on Anko with it to see if it'd work. This was before Orochimaru discovered Juugo's unique chakra and used that to make the seal for Sasuke and the others. I just took liberty with making Kurama's old chakra a major part of the experimental seal in this story. If you still have any question or complaint about that, I'd be happy to answer anything, although the next chapter will elaborate on this a bit more.**

**One more thing, I have no intention of turning Naruto in a half-demon or have his condition be ****permanent. The transformation is just that...a temporary transformation to boost one's attributes. So any reader with an aversion to that kind of stories can rest easy on this one. :-) **

**Hope you enjoyed this long-awaited chapter. **


	11. Short-lived Secrecy

**Hello! Here's the newest installment in the story. I hope y'all enjoy this! **

**As usual, thanks goes to beta-readers LoverofLemons and Brian Stentzel for their help in tweaking this chapter for your improved reading enjoyment. Unfortunately, I sadly announce that this will be the last chapter Brian Stentzel has helped editing. Thanks to him, I learned how to fix a lot of my usual grammatical and spelling errors from seeing his edits so I hope to continue on with my improved writing for the upcoming chapters. **

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**WARNING: This story will contain mature language, sexual themes, and graphic depictions of violence and gore.**

**DISCLAIMER: I do not own Naruto or any of its characters.**

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**Chapter 11: Short-Lived Secrecy**

**Early morning in Naruto's apartment**

_Ok, self-checklist time. _Naruto thought while staring at the orange-red fur covering his clawed right hand and forearm as he heard another knocking at the front door to his apartment.

_**Do you really have to do that right now!? **_Kurama shouted nervously from inside the seal. She wasn't looking forward to seeing anyone's reaction to her container starting to have her characteristics pop up all over his body. She could only hope whoever was at the door was a friendly.

_I absorb the fox's chakra from Anko-san's crappy seal last night. _Naruto ignored Kurama's rant as he kept going down his 'list'.

_**Don't talk as if I'm not here, dammit! **_

_I pass out in pain as soon as we got home. _Kurama laughed uproariously at that.

_**You screamed like a pussy doing it too! Then again, not everyone can say they stayed conscious feeling like their entire body was on fire from inside out for at least ten minutes before finally passing out. **_Naruto developed an annoyed tick on his left temple as he heard the fox's initial insult before continuing, flexing his fur-covered right hand in front of his face.

_I wake up to see my right hand covered in fur- _

_**Soft and luscious. **_Kurama cut in with no small amount of pride in her voice.

*sigh* _-soft and luscious fur similar in color to the demon fox sealed inside me._

_**I said don't talk as if I'm not here! **_

_And now I'm hearing knocking at the front door and said demon fox is bitching at me like there's no tomorrow. _

_**Oi, you bastard!**_

Naruto ignored more of the demon fox's cursing as he got himself up despite still feeling some pain from last night's episode. He checked all over his body for any other sign of transformation but it looked like only his right hand was partially transformed. Naruto heard another knocking at the front door, this time impatient and harsher.

"Ok, let's see if we can't get rid of this." Naruto quietly murmured as he looked at his right hand and started to concentrate on diverting most of his chakra away from his right arm, only leaving the bare minimum. The effect was almost instantaneous as the fur and the claws retracted immediately, turning his right hand back to normal. He then allowed the normal amount of chakra to flow back into his arm. Nothing happened. Naruto assumed it was probably just some leftover demonic chakra from last night's episode that caused this before he expelled it. So he really did transform using the demon fox's chakra.

_**Huh. That actually worked out okay. **_Kurama snapped out of her rant long enough to say this, sounding almost disappointed.

_What were you expecting to happen?_

_**Some sort of a ridiculous situation in which you desperately try to hide your hand using whatever means possible as you had to let whoever's at the front door in and it just gets more silly as time goes on. **_Naruto raised an eyebrow with an amused smirk.

_Is my life really like a crappy sitcom to you?_

_**Yes...yes it is. **_

Chuckling, Naruto turned to the door and started walking toward it slowly, wondering who would visit him. He assumed it to be the Hokage coming to check on him after hearing the report from the boar-masked ANBU about the assault on Anko and her subsequent rescue by the blonde.

However, instincts screamed at him to save himself as he was about to reach for the door knob and he already started to bend back into a back flip. Only that saved him from a possibly fatal wound when the blade of a ninjato suddenly pierced through the door toward where the boy's throat would have been if he had been unaware. Naruto did two backward somersaults down the entrance hallway before landing and blurring through hand seals almost by instinct.

"**Katon: Housenka(Mystical Phoenix Fire)!" **Naruto murmured before inhaling quickly to spit out three small fire projectiles toward the door. It shattered into many fiery pieces and they blew out onto the apartment building's overgrown front yard below, allowing the cool morning air to blow into Naruto's apartment. It was apparent to Naruto that no one was behind the door when he blew it away. Looking around warily, he jumped in fright when the large living room window loudly shattered as an unknown person jumped through it toward the shocked Naruto. It was thanks to years of practicing Raging Fox that the boy acrobatically jumped to the side at the last minute, horizontally twirling his body a few times, as he avoided a vicious overhead sword strike before landing on his feet. In the next instant, he jumped forward low to the floor into the living room from the hallway to avoid a horizontal slash aimed at where his neck was an instant before. He then went into a roll on the floor before springing out of it and latching with chakra to the opposite wall from the attacker. Taking advantage of the momentary lapse, he finally got a good look at the intruder.

"N-N-neko-san!" Naruto exclaimed in shock as he looked over the curvacious figure of the purple-haired female fully decked out in her ANBU outfit, complete with her cat mask. She slowly turned toward her opponent after she had missed her initial attacks. Naruto could feel anger and murderous intent rolling off her.

"W-w-what's going on? What did I do to piss you off?!" Naruto tried to ask before he had to jump up to the ceiling to avoid a stab at his previous position, and dodged a flurry of sword slashes, which cut the ceiling into ribbons, from the cat-masked woman as he scrambled on the ceiling with chakra in his hands and feet. He made his way back out of the living room into the hallway before dropping to the floor and turning around to see the woman stand still in the middle of the living room, her sword slightly trembling as she shook with rage.

"You're saying you don't know what you did?!" the woman growled in anger as she brandished her sword threateningly toward the blonde.

"I'm pretty sure I would know if I did something to piss someone off this much." Naruto deadpanned. The boy's nonchalant response only served to incense the woman further. The ANBU jumped toward the boy rearing her sword back to slash at him. Thanking the fact that he didn't undress from last night and still had his shinobi gear on him, Naruto quickly tossed something from his waist pouch toward the attacking woman. Neko only had time to register that this slow-moving projectile was a small smoke bomb before it exploded on impact with her mask. Her mask protected her eyes and nose from any kind of irritation but it was enough to blind her for a moment. Naruto didn't waste this chance as he vanished down the hallway toward the bedroom in the back of his apartment. The female ANBU got over her momentary blindness to see that Naruto had disappeared. Cursing, she started to slowly stalk her way down the hallway as if she was a predator looking for her prey, her sword out in front of her ready to cut anything. A disemboweled voice echoed all around Neko in the hallway, making her slightly flinch.

"I just figured out something. When I took Anko-san to her apartment last night, I thought there was a familiar scent there but I couldn't place it until now. It was the same sword-cleaning kit scent I'm smelling on you. There were also pictures of you with Anko at her place. It's easy to see with your hair color. You're close to her, aren't you?"

The ANBU growled at being identified so easily but didn't say anything as she continued her painfully slow trek toward the closed bedroom door, noting two doors on the hallway's walls beside the bedroom door at the end. She assumed one of them to be for the bathroom. She didn't know where the second door led to.

"I'll take that as a yes. Now then, I believe your anger with me has something to do with what happened last night. Otherwise, there's no explanation for your coming here trying to shove your sword up my ass. The only thing is, I don't remember doing anything to piss off anyone. Before we resume battling, I would like an explanation on that oh-so-important issue."

Enraged at Naruto's continued ignorance, the female ANBU abruptly ripped her mask off to reveal a beautiful woman with exotic slatted eyes which were burning with rage. She began speaking calmly as she hung her mask at her waist, but she kept her sword up cautiously.

"Now that you've seen pictures of me at my apartment, there's no point hiding my face from you. My name's Uzuki Yugao and Anko-chan's been my surrogate little sister for five years since she came back to the village from -" Naruto noticed this pause. "- somewhere. Because of some issues, her life's been very difficult and I swore to myself I'd protect my little sister from any harm. That includes you after you took advantage of her last night!"

A long silence followed Yugao's accusation.

"Huh?" was Naruto's intelligent reply, which made the woman growl.

"Don't play dumb with me! I come back from my night-shift patrolling around the village only to have Boar-san tell me that Anko-chan got assaulted and that you were taking her home. I left right away for home and when I got there, what did I find!?" Yugao almost shouted at the end. Naruto was still waiting in confused silence. The woman pressed on.

"Are you really this ignorant!? She was shirtless! Her flak jacket was on the floor! She was knocked out and maybe you couldn't contain your curiosity and had a look, but it's still unforgivable!"

"W-w-what!? I did nothing to her! I did do something when we got to your apartment but that wasn't whatever you were thinking! Please believe me!" Naruto stammered, trying to defuse the situation now that he knew what was going on. Meanwhile, Kurama was cackling in his head.

_**Forget what I said earlier! This is a much better sitcom moment to watch! A massive misunderstanding going on between an enraged and irrational woman and a boy who couldn't explain his way out of a wet paper bag! **_

"Oh really? Her pink bra was already discarded when I got there. Are you really sure you didn't see anything!?" Yugao demanded.

"No way. Besides, it wasn't pink, it was purple-"

"AHA!"

"Shit!" Naruto cursed as he realized he was tricked.

_**You can be such a gullible fool sometimes. **_Kurama chuckled in his head to his annoyance.

"I'm going to find you and stab you repeatedly, then haul you in front of Anko-chan when she wakes up so she can finish you off to preserve her honor! Take it like a man!" Yugao resumed her slow stalking toward the bedroom door, stepping past the first door on the left.

"What's with you ANBU and stabbing with pointy things!? And I'm still ten years old!"

"You'll be a man in a few years and that's good enough for me! Come out!" Yugao challenged as she gingerly made her slow steps toward the bedroom, her sword still held with tension. She was convinced that Naruto was hiding in the bedroom. Naruto let out a sigh.

"Fine, you leave me no choice. I'll just beat you up a little so I can have you actually listen to my side of the story." Naruto's resigned voice echoed around Yugao which made her pause momentarily. There was no false bravado in his voice. He was confident he could get one over her, an elite ANBU swordswoman. That made her slightly nervous for the first time since she entered the apartment. Still, she chuckled.

"You forget you're just a child up against an elite sword expert. Even with your training, you won't beat me." She shivered as she practically felt Naruto's lips form into a knowing smirk.

"That would be true seeing I haven't found some sabers yet and the practice swords I have won't do anything against you. However, you made a mistake when you came in here." Naruto paused for a few seconds to let the words sink in, before he finished.

"You stepped into my turf."

On that cue, as Yugao made one more step toward the bedroom passing the second door on the right, a certain spot on the right side of the hallway started to shimmer just behind the woman to reveal the blonde coming out of the **Invisibility Cloak **jutsu he learned from his godfather. Another Naruto shimmered out of the cloak higher up on the opposite wall, sticking to it with chakra on his back. Finally, the last Naruto appeared sticking to the ceiling like a spider just above Yugao's head. The Naruto on the ceiling flashed a smirk before he dropped from the ceiling, preparing to subdue Yugao. Unfortunately for him, Yugao felt the intention and instinctively stabbed upward with her sword, skewering Naruto in the air easily. The boy's shocked look made Yugao flinch and she wondered if she may have taken this too far, only to become alarmed when he smirked evilly before dispelling into smoke, revealing this one to be a shadow clone.

Before Yugao could react, she was struck hard on her right shoulder from behind when the second Naruto jumped off the wall toward her with a flying kick. It then dispelled on impact. It didn't knock her over, but it made her lose her grip on her sword momentarily. That was all the real Naruto, standing in front of the bedroom door cloaked, needed as he dropped the jutsu and dashed forward to jump and kick upward at the hilt of the woman's sword before she could recover. It knocked the sword up out of her grip to stick deep into the ceiling above, depriving the female ANBU of her primary weapon. Naruto, still in the air from the jump, spun around once before thrusting out his leg to land squarely on the woman's chest, making her stumble backward down the hall.

Yugao grunted in frustration at her own arrogance putting her at a disadvantage early but she wouldn't give up. She quickly recovered and put her hands up in a defensive pose, prepared for whatever Naruto was going to do next as he landed gracefully and strode toward her with a confident look on his face. Unfortunately she was too focused on the real Naruto to notice the third clone on the floor behind her as it kicked hard at the back of her right knee. It automatically made her fall to the floor on that knee before she even knew what was happening. Before she could recover, she felt a hand wrap around her delicate neck as Naruto stepped past her. The boy grunted with exertion as he pulled her backward to fling her. Before she knew it, she was flying toward the first hallway door she passed, now held open by a clone. The clone grinned before waving at Yugao as she flew through the door and tumbled down some stairs before it closed the door.

Groaning in pain from the fall and coughing a little at the pressure the boy momentarily exerted on her throat for the throw, it took her a moment to realize that she could not see anything as she pushed herself up off the cold and damp floor. It was pitch black all around her. Feeling some growing discomfort, she suppressed it as she remembered her training. She strained to listen for any slightest noise as she waited for her vision to try to adjust to the darkness. Before long, multiple beams of bright lights flooded the room, making Yugao put her hand up to shield her eyes as she winced. A booming voice echoed throughout the brightly lit room, making Yugao shift into a stiff defensive posture.

"**Welcome to the bottom floor. Since all the tenants and even the landlord abandoned this building due to my unique status, I have free run of this entire building. I converted this entire floor into my personal trap room for anyone stupid enough to try to invade my home. That would include you." **

Yugao narrowed her eyes at the insult but wouldn't move or respond.

"**Since you're the tenth guest to experience this unique attraction, you've won a prize. The prize is-" **Yugao could practically feel Naruto's sinister grin as if it was the Kyuubi's. **"-an extra fifteen minutes added to the usual thirty minutes tour of the Uzumaki House of Horrors!"**

The lights then shut off just after the boy's announcement and the room fell into complete darkness. A moment later, a sound that no one would expect to hear from Yugao came out when a shrill and girly scream, first of many, echoed throughout the dark room.

**Forty-five minutes later**

The Third Hokage was rather concerned. Last night, when he heard the report from Boar-san that Naruto decimated three chunin by himself to rescue Mitarashi Anko from a terrible experience, he was proud. That was before he realized the boy rescued Anko in an area he rarely passed by. There was absolutely no reason for him to just happen to come upon the scene, so the Hokage deduced something lured him there last night. As he wondered what that was, he decided to stop by and visit the boy the next day. Now, as the Third Hokage walked up to the boy's apartment building, he noticed something peculiar. The overgrown front yard was smoldering with small fires spreading everywhere.

Not too alarmed by that, he snapped his fingers for an ANBU to appear at his side. No command was needed as the ANBU guard simply flashed through hand seals to call up a low-powered water jutsu to put out the fire. Continuing into the building and upstairs, he became a little more cautious when he noticed the window to the living room was shattered and the front door was blasted outward, leaving only two small burning pieces of wood around the hinges. Sarutobi quickly stepped into the apartment to see the place in a mess as if a battle happened. Before the old man could become genuinely worried for the boy's well-being, one of the hallway's doors slammed open attracting the attention of the Hokage and the two ANBU guards behind him. They heard grunts of exertion as if something heavy was being carried then they heard a voice.

"Every ANBU can assassinate a flea from 100 meters. They take on S-ranked missions without flinching. All of you strike fear into the hearts of hardened enemy shinobi everywhere. Yet, why the hell do you guys have a problem with taking a 10-year-old boy like me down? I'd actually be disappointed in your performance if it didn't mean I'd get hurt badly if I lost."

The Hokage smirked as he felt the two ANBU behind him flinch with slight indignation at what was said. The blonde finally came into view carrying a tied-up female adult over his shoulder. He noticed the Hokage standing at the front doorway and sighed.

"Sorry, Jiji-san. This idiot came into my home wanting to introduce her sword to my stomach and I had to defend myself." The boy grumbled as he nonchalantly tossed the body with a thud at the feet of the Hokage. The Third took a moment to see who it was. He was surprised to see it was Yugao, one of the top ANBU operatives under his command. She was covered from head to toe in a mixture of bright colored paints and various insects which made her squirm against the rope bounding her tightly. Sarutobi also noticed an overpowering smell of used ramen broth wafting from her entire body. He also realized why she couldn't talk just yet as she was gagged with some cloth in her mouth. She looked up at the Hokage with shame in her eyes and an embarrassed blush on her cheeks while the two ANBU behind the Hokage shook as they tried with all their might to hold in their laughter. Sarutobi sighed and smiled gently.

"Uzumaki House of Horrors?" he simply asked. The woman trembled at the memory of what was done to her just a moment ago before she slowly nodded, her shame growing.

"No need to be so ashamed. You're not alone. He got me in there once when I tried to punish him one time by forbidding ramen a couple years ago." Said boy harrumphed.

"No one messes with my already limited ramen intake." Naruto declared as he crossed his arms defiantly.

The Hokage chuckled for a moment before his expression became deadly serious, making Naruto step backward involuntarily under the steely gaze he was getting.

"Now, I would like an explanation for this, and also for why you happened to come upon Anko-chan while she was being assaulted. Your guard, Boar-san, said you were miles away and you had no reason to be in the area where the incident happened before you suddenly ran at full speed in a straight line toward Anko-chan as if you knew something was happening to her." This made Yugao's eyes widen and somewhat grateful to the boy because any other way would have ended up with her beloved surrogate sister broken beyond recovery. Naruto sighed before he bent down to untie the purple-haired woman, surprising her.

"Now that I've calmed Yugao-san down, I'd like to let her get cleaned up then I'll tell you everything when she's done since she needs to hear this as well. I don't feel like repeating myself. In the meantime, would you like some tea?" Naruto nonchalantly asked with a friendly smile as the cold morning wind from the shattered living room window and the front door whipped throughout the apartment, sending debris fluttering around everywhere. The Hokage and the two ANBU escorts sweatdropped as they looked down at Yugao with deadpan expressions, making her flinch again in embarrassment.

**Fifteen minutes later**

"Cold!" a female voice shrieked from the bathroom as Naruto set a cup of tea down in front of the Hokage sitting at the flimsy kitchen table. The blonde snickered.

"Sorry Yugao-san, I forgot to tell you there's been no hot water in this place for a couple years. I've gotten used to it." the boy shouted down the hall to the bathroom.

"You did that on purpose!" Yugao's voice accused from inside the bathroom.

"If you want to go through the streets and into your home smelling like years-old ramen broth, be my guest. I'm sure Anko-san would love that."

There was silence, then some grumbling from the bathroom making Naruto and Sarutobi smile. The Hokage took a sip out of his cup of tea.

"This is quite good." the Third observed, genuinely impressed.

"We concur." a voice echoed from the living room. They looked over to see the two masked ANBU escorts from earlier sitting comfortably on the sofa as they held their cups up in salute to Naruto. The blonde chuckled.

"When you have a demon fox sensei force you to eat more healthy, you learn how to cook better. It also helps when I have Hiashi-sama and Hinata-chan around to teach me the art of making good tea."

The other three nodded in understanding.

"I have to ask though. How the hell are you drinking with your masks on?" Naruto wanted to know. The two ANBU looked at each other before looking over at the boy. He could feel their grins under the masks.

"Wouldn't you like to know? It's a trade secret. We have Kakashi-senpai to thank for that." one of them said as the three older men smiled at the boy's annoyed expression.

"It figures Kakashi-sensei had something to do with this. I've been watching him eat every single meal last summer break and I still couldn't figure out how the hell he was eating with the facemask still on." Naruto complained. The Hokage chuckled at the display before he became a little concerned about something.

"Naruto-kun, you said you haven't had hot water here for years. Are you unable to afford the bill?"

The Third's insides twisted as he saw the boy's expression flash to anger for a moment and he knew it wasn't about the money.

"They said they were turning off the gas line to this place since it's abandoned and they don't have a reason to believe a homeless orphan like me is living here legally, even though I still pay my monthly rent to the landlord who doesn't even live here." The Hokage narrowed his eyes in anger at this boy's continued discrimination.

"Then how are you getting gas for cooking? You just prepared hot tea for us."

Naruto walked over to open a cabinet door next to the stove, revealing a large white tank hidden in there.

"I jury-rigged a propane tank to the stove. It takes too much gas for showering so I just left that alone."

The Hokage sighed tiredly. He had thought he stamped out most of the boy's discrimination when he threatened the markets and restaurants into treating Naruto like a normal customer. Apparently he forgot about the utility companies.

"At least you're getting electricity and water."

The Hokage and even the two ANBU growled when they saw the boy flinch nervously.

"I'll simply ask how you're getting them." the Third said evenly as he glared at the boy expecting an answer.

"Alright...I managed to get electricity from the main transformer in the area after some trial-and-error. In a related matter, my clones refuse to have anything to do with electrical work. As for the water, it's just a matter of going down into the sewers to find the valves to allow water flow to here without the company knowing. Again, in a related matter, my clones refuse to go down any manhole." The boy finished as his face scrunched up at the memories he got from his clones.

"This is unacceptable! Why didn't you tell me, Naruto-kun?" Sarutobi demanded.

"Because I don't want to burden you with every problem I have. If I think I can work around it, I just don't find it necessary to ask you or anyone else for help, Jiji-san." Naruto replied with a steady gaze into the Hokage's eyes as the old man sighed.

"Alright. Now that I know what's going on, I will not allow this. We'll discuss this when you return from the trip with Jiraiya-kun. Is that clear?"

Naruto just shrugged before nodding unenthusiastically when Yugao's voice emitted from the bathroom.

"Naruto-san, the pants barely fit, but are you sure this shirt is the only one you have that would fit me?"

"It's the biggest size I have. Before Jiji-san here got the clothing shops to sell anything to me at regular prices, I was scavenging for any discarded clothing. Luckily for you, I kept some of them. It should fit you since it's a large."

"It's a large for a child! My breasts are going to pop out!"

Immediately, all three men sported nosebleeds. The Hokage's was obvious while one could notice the two ANBU's nosebleeds underneath their masks if they see a trail of blood going down their necks. Naruto sighed in annoyance before shouting down the hall.

"Alright! You can also have one of my jackets. It's oversized and should cover you up enough. You can keep it."

"That orange monstrosity!?"

"Look, it's either you causing neck injuries on the streets as every man within a mile snap their heads toward you to watch with hope for your girls to pop out or wear my 'orange monstrosity'."

There was silence before they all heard a mumbled "Okay."

Naruto noticed the other three men looking at him in annoyance.

"What? I'm not a pervert like you three. I'm not going to force her to come out in that shirt if it's embarrassing for her."

A moment later, a blushing Yugao finally came out of the bathroom in a pair of black ANBU-style pants still a size or two too small for her so they were tight around her long and slender legs and her curvacious hips. In the right lighting, one could see every curve of her plump rear end easily. Naruto's orange jacket barely covered her torso entirely as her navel was exposed slightly and her well-endowed breasts strained against the chest area, threatening to have the zipper seam burst open. To top it off, her damp hair was slightly curly and alluring and some of it were sticking to her face and neck in a sexy manner. All the men had one thought.

_Wow, it's not as big a step down from the tight t-shirt as I thought. Thank you Kami-sama, for this wondrous sight!_

Yugao glared heatedly at the three older men, making them flinch and look away as they wondered how she knew what they were thinking. Yugao sighed before turning toward Naruto sitting next to the Hokage at the kitchen table.

"Now, I want an explanation from start to finish in detail, Naruto-san. If I don't like what you have to say, I'll just say you surprised me the first time because I underestimated you. It won't happen again."

**An hour of explanations later**

Naruto sat still in his seat at the table as he stared across at the stunned visages of the Hokage and Yugao. The ANBU escorts had left long ago, sent out by the Hokage to avoid the sensitive details of what happened last night being overheard. As the boy expected, the Hokage's stunned expression slowly shifted into a frown. It was obvious Sarutobi didn't approve of this boy's recklessness, even though this resulted in Anko finally being free of the curse mark's effects. Yugao's reaction, on the other hand, was unexpected in the boy's mind. He had expected her to get angry at him for risking Anko's health. He didn't expect this. The woman's mouth was agape and her eyes were wide open in a desperate stare at him as they became watery.

"Y-you b-broke that s-snake's curse on her? T-tell me y-you're not joking, Naruto-san." Yugao's voice trembled as she stared intently at the boy for any sign of deceit. The boy shifted nervously under her hungry gaze before he flinched when she stood to her feet to lean over the table, her face inches from his. Her chair noisily clattered backward from the action.

"TELL ME YOU'RE NOT JOKING RIGHT NOW!" She screamed, desperate for this to be true. At this point, tears slowly began to form at the outer corners of her beautiful slatted eyes. Naruto fixed his steely gaze with hers, all trace of his previous nervousness gone.

"I'm not joking. I would never do that when it's something this serious. It's gone. Totally destroyed. I corrupted it with the fox's chakra and I watched it shatter into a million pieces and they just...disappeared from Anko-san's skin. After that she relaxed immediately and seemed to be sleeping very contentedly when I left her."

The last sentence struck Yugao deeply. Her bluish-green pupils shrank as she realized something she didn't notice when she first checked up on the still sleeping Anko. She wasn't thrashing around and breaking out in cold sweat like she did most nights when the curse mark caused her horrible nightmares. Keeping her gaze trained on Naruto, Yugao slowly stepped around the table to his side and just let herself sink numbly to her knees to get her level with the seated boy. Naruto was wondering what was going on before he was pulled into a bone-crushing hug as Yugao wrapped herself tightly around the boy's frame, her face buried in his neck. He blushed bright red at feeling her large chest press tightly against his before he sobered up upon hearing quiet sobs from the purple-haired woman.

"You have no idea how much Anko-chan suffered with that curse mark for the past five years. Not only does it show others that she was 'tainted' by that fucking traitor, it made her suffer so much by whispering dark thoughts into her mind that she had to ignore all the time and it was giving her horrible nightmares nearly every night. Just hearing her describe one of her nightmares kept me up for several nights. There were days that she nearly went insane and just wanted to kill everyone and I had to talk her down. I nearly lost myself to despair several times listening to her cries and whimpers nearly every night and I couldn't do anything about it but be helpless. Thank you so much, Uzumaki Naruto." the woman softly whispered next to the boy's ear as she continued to clutch the boy tightly in her embrace. Naruto could only smile gently as he softly patted the trembling woman on her back. Naruto shifted his gaze over to the Third, who was still frowning non-approvingly.

"While I'm glad you've managed to rid Anko-chan of her greatest suffering, I still feel you were reckless in doing this, Naruto-kun. Dealing with an unknown seal require a delicate approach since we do not know what could happen if we made a mistake in the process of removing it. From the way you described it, you just went at it with brute force hoping it'd work. You put one of my best subordinates at risk doing that. You'll understand my disapproval of this." the Hokage said evenly as he narrowed his eyes.

"I know, Jiji-san. I would never have tried that before I learned one thing a few months ago." Naruto calmly spoke as the sobbing Yugao continued to hug him tightly, still feeling she hadn't showed him enough gratitude. The Hokage raised an eyebrow.

"Something to do with the Kyuubi, I presume?"

Naruto smirked.

**Flashback a few months ago**

_That's odd. _Naruto thought as he looked down a sizzling piece of paper. He was sitting cross-legged in the middle of his living room. All four walls, the floor, and even some of the ceiling were covered with papers with random scribblings of seals. He was experimenting with seals and he had encased his entire room in a privacy barrier since he didn't want anyone else to get a glimpse of his experiments on seals.

_**That's...an interesting result. **_Kurama suddenly spoke up from inside her seal.

_Yes. This storage seal should be able to store chakra, but when I tried to channel your chakra into the seal, it just fizzled out. I was hoping to see if using your chakra instead of my own would change anything. _

_**Let's try something else. Create a clone with some of my chakra so it'd be able to use it and get out an activated exploding tag. **_

Naruto raised an eyebrow.

_The clone isn't going to like that. _

_**Luckily you can order it around. Do it. **_

Naruto sighed and created a frowning clone, who already started protesting. After a minute of arguing and convincing the clone it wasn't going to feel any pain anyway, the clone relented before they went downstairs into the trap room to get away from damaging sensitive documents in the living room. They activated another privacy barrier before the original placed an activated exploding tag in the middle of the room and stepped off to the side far enough from the tag's range. The clone nervously stepped up to the tag and bent down to the knees before carefully touching the tag to channel some of the demon's fox chakra directly into the tag. The clone closed its eyes as it expected to be blown to bits. When nothing happened for a few seconds, its eyes popped wide open to see the exploding tag fizzle out as if it was a dud. It jumped around and celebrated its continued existence while Naruto observed the tag with an intrigued eyebrow. He then procured another exploding tag, a much more powerful one this time. The clone's mood took a nosedive as he noticed the new tag in Naruto's hand.

After a few minutes of nerve-wracking experiences, the traumatized and twitching clone dispelled itself without permission after the fifth test.

"Pussy."Naruto murmured as he looked over five fizzled exploding tags.

_**So the first tag wasn't just a lucky dud then. My chakra corrupts seals created by human chakra. **_

_That would be a fantastic development but we have to test more different kinds of seals before we come to that definite conclusion. I wonder about the seal on my stomach though. Your chakra should have destroyed it if it was created by my dad. _

_**Maybe he accounted for this possibility when he created the seal array? I feel no trace of any human's chakra going through the array, only mine. He may have made sure the array is only activated using my chakra so there's no possibility of corruption. **_

_So as long as I figure out how to activate any seal array with your chakra instead of mine, the seal should work with your chakra. _

_**That's the theory. We have a lot of testing to do. To the lab!**_

**Flashback End**

"After that, we broke every seal array we could create so badly, it's scary. Storage, elemental, weapon, barrier, privacy...the list goes on. They're all pathetic before the fox's chakra. Also, just to be sure it wasn't just my chakra that the fox's chakra could only break, we 'borrowed' and tested several simple storage scrolls from various people throughout the village. Same results. That's why I felt somewhat confident about breaking Anko-san's seal, even if it was more advanced and complex than what I've managed to test so far." Naruto finished the explanation with a somber look.

The Hokage stared at Naruto in pale-faced shock. Yugao had let go of Naruto while he was in the middle of his explanation and was looking at him with an impressed look.

"Y-you... realize what this means?" the Third murmured in a low whisper. Naruto just nodded with a serious look.

"Hokage-sama, you sound like you weren't pleased about this." Yugao quizzed with her head cocked in confusion. Naruto snorted.

"It means my life would be in even more danger if people found out about this." Naruto said dismissively as if he was talking about the weather. Yugao narrowed her eyes as she looked over at the Hokage hoping for a contradiction only to see him nodding his head gravely. Before she could speak more, the Hokage put a hand up for silence with a tense expression. As Naruto and Yugao looked at him, the old man pointed a finger down the hallway. They nodded in understanding before they all moved silently into the bedroom. Within seconds, Naruto activated the room's privacy seal.

"Why would Naruto-san have to worry for his life?" Yugao suddenly asked as the barrier rose.

"Because he most likely stumbled onto the master key for nearly every seal array in existence."

"I would think that'd be good. If he could infiltrate any village, bypass any sealed room or chest, and is able to get out of trap seals easily, he'd be a deadly shinobi." Yugao continued, not getting the picture.

"That's exactly why. That kind of ability won't stay hidden long if we overuse it and what do you think will happen when other villages find out about him? They'll panic about their security and send legions of assassins after him. I don't even want to think about the people within this village as well." the Hokage spoke with an edge to his voice.

"Why would we have to worry about our own village? Sure, the villagers don't have much love for Naruto-san, but they don't have much to do with seals." Yugao quizzed as she suddenly realized how much danger Naruto could be in from enemies from outside but she wasn't sure about what their own village could have to do with this.

"The **Hiraishin no Jutsu **scroll, to name just one thing." Naruto suddenly interjected. The Hokage and Yugao looked over at the blonde with surprise, before they nodded in understanding.

"If it's around, then it's most likely under tight lock and key with multiple seal arrays all over it, only to be opened by a qualified person. The Yondaime Hokage probably never accounted for the fox's chakra in his seals until when he designed the **Four Symbols and Eight Tiagrams **seal array for the fox." Naruto theorized. He made sure to leave out any mention of his connection to his father in his previous explanation and just now since Yugao wasn't privy to that information.

"I can name at least five people that would kidnap you and force you to unseal anything they want in this village for their personal gain." the Hokage growled as he focused his mind on particularly one person: his old teammate Danzo.

"Th-that's absurd! I won't allow that!" Yugao's face twisted into disgust.

"Good because I'm declaring this a SS-rank secret, Yugao-san. It will not even be recorded anywhere. Only you, Naruto-kun, and I know this and we will keep it in our heads. As Naruto-kun and I trust Jiraiya-kun implicitly and this has to do with seals, I will tell him and no one else. If anyone else comes to either of you about this, eliminate that person immediately. It will only be verbally passed down to people you trust completely in the future. If, for any reason, you don't trust any new Hokage after me a hundred percent, do not even tell him or her. Naruto-kun, this ability does not officially exist outside of us three. Is. That. Understood?" the Hokage spoke in a low voice as he glared and spiked his killing intent at Yugao and Naruto, who both flinched nervously before saluting with a hand over their hearts and bowing.

"Yes, Hokage-sama!" they said loudly at the same time. The Hokage nodded solemnly before continuing.

"Naruto-kun, you're to use that ability only if the situation calls for it as a last resort, and be discreet about it. If there was any witness, use your judgment on if you would allow this person to live or not. If not, terminate the person or people with extreme prejudice. I'm serious about this. It's for your and this village's safety."

Naruto sobered as if doused with cold water at being given free reign to kill any witness but he understood the seriousness of this.

"Yes, Hokage-sama." the blonde replied less enthusiastically this time. Sarutobi understood his surrogate grandson's reluctance but he knew the boy would make the right choice either way each time this came up in the future. He then turned toward his female ANBU.

"Yugao-san, I'm sorry but the only reason you're even in this discussion is because you happened to hear this by accident and I needed to make the implications of spreading news of this very clear. Otherwise, it would have been just between Naruto-kun and me if I had anything to say about it. However, I trust you. Please do not betray my expectations." The woman felt pride in gaining her Hokage's absolute trust as she bowed deeply at her hips.

"Yes, Hokage-sama. I owe Naruto-san my life for saving my little sister from any further suffering under that damn curse mark. I will never do anything to compromise his safety."

"I'd like to make a request, if you don't mind." the blonde interjected. The Hokage and Yugao inclined their heads to show they were listening.

"Please don't tell Anko-san that I broke the seal right away. I don't want her to feel like she owes me anything." Naruto quickly explained the last part as soon as he saw the rebellious look forming on Yugao's face.

"Why?! She should know who freed her from five years of misery!" Yugao was about to continue ranting when she was stopped by Naruto pointing a finger at her.

"If your reaction to me breaking the curse was any indication, I don't want to find out how much more extreme her reaction would be. I'm not saying she has to be clueless forever. Just until after she got used to the idea of life without the seal on her, then maybe she'd be more calm about thanking me." Naruto spoke calmly as Yugao blushed slightly at the reminder of her crying and hugging the boy for all he was worth for thirty minutes. Naruto seemed to have a way of making her uncharacteristically unlike her usual stoic demeanor.

"It will be difficult to keep Anko-chan in the dark. She's going to do everything she can to find out your identity." the Hokage offered.

"You're welcome to use Ero-sennin in my place. It'd explain why she was shirtless anyway." the two adults flinched at the boy's sinister smirk as he imagined Anko going after Jiraiya with every kunai on her person for supposedly getting her half-naked. The Hokage quickly shook his head.

"As much as that might be fun to see, Jiraiya-kun was the one who applied the **Evil Sealing Method** technique. If he couldn't remove the seal back then, she wouldn't believe it was him this time."

"Besides, you haven't heard Anko go into details many times about how much she would 'thank' the person for removing the curse mark no matter who the person would be, even if it turned out to be a female. She might actually do something she'd regret with Jiraiya-sama." Yugao quickly cut in, her face scrunching up at the image of Anko and Jiraiya going at it. The boy paled at the thought before shaking it off to continue.

"All the more reason why I shouldn't reveal myself yet! Besides, there's your law, Jiji-san." Naruto said as he looked at the Hokage, who raised an eyebrow indicating this needed further explanation.

"There's a lot of details about me surrounding this incident that's forbidden by your law so they cannot be revealed to anyone below jounin rank. Last time I checked, Anko-san's a chunin, isn't she?"

"That's a sloppy excuse and you know it. Though it might be enough to keep her off our case for a while until things calm down. I guess we'll have to respect your wishes for now, though you should note we do it with reluctance." the Hokage spoke as he put on a thoughtful expression.

"Wait a minute! What the hell am I supposed to tell Anko-chan?" Yugao interjected loudly. She then trembled under the evil smirks given off by the two males.

"You figure it out." they both said at the same time.

A few minutes later after Yugao said her goodbye, albeit reluctantly, she left the blonde and the old man alone to go check if Anko has woken up yet.

"There's something you left out when you explained your situation from last night. What is it?" Sarutobi said matter-of-factly when he confirmed there was no one within earshot of them. Naruto put a hand behind his neck nervously.

"Yeah. Remember when I explained the situation with Yang-infused chakra being taken out of the fox and I can't bring out more of her chakra without going crazy because of that?"

The Hokage simply nodded, waiting for the 'punchline'.

"We just found out some of the fox's old chakra with the Yang essence still exists."

Sarutobi narrowed his eyes in anger as he connected the dots and growled.

"So my ex-student is willing to go so far as to put the Kyuubi's chakra in innocent humans." Naruto nodded to confirm this.

"That's why I broke the seal, in addition to wanting to stop Anko-san's suffering. I just absorbed all the fox's chakra that was in her. This morning, I woke up with this." Naruto brought his right hand up and channeled some of the demon fox's chakra into it. The Hokage watched in amazement as orange-red fur suddenly grew out of Naruto's skin on his forearm and hand and the fingertips sharped into intimidating-looking claws.

"Is that all you can transform into at this moment?" the Hokage finally inquired after spending a long moment looking closely at the boy's arm.

"I don't know. I wasn't able to test anything before Yugao-san dropped by unannounced." Naruto grumbled as Sarutobi smiled amusedly at the boy's previous predicament. That smile changed into a puzzled expression as he thought of a possible hole in Naruto's theory about the Kyuubi's chakra destroying seal arrays.

"Naruto-kun, you said you destroyed Anko-san's curse mark, which was infused with Orochimaru's chakra, with the Kyuubi's chakra, yet if the curse mark was containing that chakra, how is it not destroyed from the onset?"

"I honestly don't know. I didn't even bother to study the seal, so I can't make any educated guess. Was there any information from when Ero-sennin studied the seal?" Naruto inquired of the Hokage, who nodded.

"There was only a few tidbits, but Jiraiya-kun managed to deduce that there was a slavery seal along with a remote kill seal integrated into the main array. Also, Jiraiya-kun observed that Anko felt intense pain every time she felt murderous intention toward Orochimaru, as if something in the mark could sense it. It took several weeks after she returned to the village but we managed to train her emotions enough to keep it from hurting her every other hour." Naruto furrowed his brows in thought for a moment.

"If I was to make an evil seal using a corrosive chakra, I would design two separate seals mixed into one. One seal made of my chakra for control, the other to hold the corrosive chakra. When certain conditions are met, my chakra would open the gate to allow the corrosive chakra to flow into the body without it touching my own. Kind of like a control panel for a floodgate. It's most likely not the only way but it's the simplest one to explain what the hebi-teme could have done with the fox's chakra. However, I'd have to see the notes on this seal to truly understand what it did to keep the fox's chakra contained within. I did say the fox's chakra will break most seals and it did when it touched the part of Anko-san's seal that was the hebi-teme's, but it looks like it can still be contained in certain ways with my own seal being the prime example."

Sarutobi nodded as he was deep in thought. Sighing, he decided to put this aside until they came across some new information about this. He then looked at Naruto.

"We should continue where we left off about your transformation. We have the privacy barrier still up. Go ahead and channel the chakra to everywhere on your body and see what happens." the Hokage encouraged, curious if there was more to this new development. Naruto tried this and the only change was that his left hand also grew the same fur and claws.

"I haven't tried bringing up my chakra shroud. I wonder if it's different." Naruto pointed out to the Hokage, who allowed further experimentation with a nod of his head. Naruto brought out even more power, enough to form a one-tailed chakra shroud. The Hokage had to hold his ground steady at being next to such a massive presence from the demon fox. The chakra shroud formed almost too quickly. There was no new physical changes aside from his fur-covered hands.

"Huh. I don't remember it being this easy to bring it out so fast. And I feel slightly less on edge. Usually when I'm using the shroud I get a little aggressive and irritable easily. Now I actually feel like I can think a bit more clear. I wonder if I can get more like this the more Yang-infused chakra I find." Naruto commented as he let the shroud dissolve after a moment of observing.

"So far, the effects seem to be positive, Naruto-kun. I just thought of something and I'd like to take you to a place for a moment and see if you can feel something different about that area." The Third said as he had the privacy barrier brought down. Naruto, despite being confused, agreed and allowed himself to be taken with his grandfather figure via **Shunshin **as soon as they stepped outside of the boy's apartment.

In a moment, Naruto and Sarutobi appeared atop a water tower located high on a building's roof. Naruto looked around with a confused expression, taking in the new surrounding. There were buildings all around them and Konoha's defensive wall loomed large over them, casting a long shadow over the entire area in the late morning sunlight.

"Naruto-kun, what's different about this area?" the Third mysteriously asked as he looked down at the boy for any reaction. Naruto simply looked around for the Hokage Tower located at the center of the village under the Hokage Monument, usually his point of reference while navigating this large village. He realized right away he was basically on the very opposite side of the village from where he lived. The west side of the village near the entrance to the Hokage Monument was where he always spent most of his life. The orphanage, the academy, the clans district, his favorite restaurant, his apartment...everything he ever needed was packed into that section of the village so Naruto rarely veered over to the other sections of the village especially all the way over here on the east side.

"I doubt I ever set foot in this area. However, I'm noticing a lot of the buildings around here seem pretty new compared to the older ones I see over by where I live. Is that important?"

"Part of it. Keep guessing if you can."

Naruto continued to think intently as he observed anything different about this area while he checked over every building and person walking on the streets below the two. Inside Naruto's seal, Kurama flinched as she realized where they where and almost didn't want Naruto to find out more about her shameful behavior on the night she was controlled.

"This part of the giant wall seems to be lighter in color compared to the sections on the sides, like it was repaired." Naruto observed before he froze in realization. If this section was still destroyed, the hole would've been the size of a certain giant fox.

"It's where the fox attacked this village, isn't it?" It wasn't a question.

"Yes, Naruto-kun. Before they rebuilt this section, it was mostly destroyed all the way up to that large outdoor market." the Third explained as he pointed at a certain building quite a distance behind where they appeared.

"I didn't bring you here to try to guilt-trip the Kyuubi or anything. I wanted to see if you can feel something in the air like you did when Anko-chan's curse mark flared up." the Hokage clarified.

_**Could've fooled me.**_ the fox grumbled.

_I think I know what Jiji-san means to do. He's wondering if we can still find traces of your chakra around here. _

_**It'd be difficult. All of these buildings are new so there would be little to no trace of my chakra from back then. The only thing we can do is try using that technique. Even though it's incomplete, if you try doing it my way, it'll absorb any demonic chakra from the surrounding air like my **_**Bijuudama****_. I can feel very faint traces of my presence all over this place. I just don't know how much of it you can actually absorb. _**

"It looks like there are very small traces of the fox's presence here. Because a lot of these buildings and the wall are new, we're not going to find much, if any, chakra to absorb. What about the area beyond the wall?" Naruto inquired of the old man. The Hokage shook his head.

"It would be a waste of time. That area was turned into a barren wasteland for a few years when whatever trees were left over from the destruction died out slowly as if something were destroying them. We assumed them to be affected by the Kyuubi's chakra left over from the attack. We had Tenzo forcibly regrow that section of the forest since his wood element's ability to subdue and eliminate demonic chakra is potent. With the chakra-enchanced trees covering the wasteland now, there's only going to be a miniscule amount, if any, of the demon fox's chakra out in that area."

Naruto nodded his head before hopping up to the tallest point in the section nearby. The Hokage followed, interested in seeing what the boy was going to do.

"Jiji-san, I'm going have to use some of the fox's chakra for this. Though it'd be a small amount, these people aren't going to be happy feeling the fox's presence."

"I've got that covered, Naruto-kun." the Third said as he snapped his fingers. A bear-masked ANBU appeared at the old man's side in an instant, making Naruto jump slightly.

"Bear-san, have this section evacuated within minutes. Make up a cover story. I want every regular shinobi and civilian within a hundred meters of us in all directions gone in the next ten minutes."

The ANBU bowed and disappeared as quickly as he came. Within seconds, Naruto could hear alarmed voices as the civilians below began to be herded out of this section. He could hear people mentioning something about a gas main leaking somewhere in this area. The boy then slowly looked up at the smirking Hokage with stars in his eyes.

"Being Hokage is awesome!" Naruto exclaimed with a childish expression of awe.

"Hokage-sama, the section has been cleared out. What is your order?" Bear reappeared at the Hokage's side on his knee after a few minutes of waiting.

"Pull back out beyond the 100 meters boundary around us. That includes every ANBU. The only remaining life in this area should be just us two." the Third ordered firmly. Bear hesitated for a moment, not wanting to leave the Hokage unprotected, but he decided that should anything happen the Third could handle himself long enough for him and his colleagues to reach him in time. The masked man bowed his head before disappearing again. The Hokage then felt all of the ANBU leaving the area. After a moment, it was just him and Naruto.

"Ok, go ahead, Naruto-kun."

Naruto responded by bringing his right hand straight out in front of him, its palm facing up and fingers curled inward as if he was holding a ball. The Hokage could feel an influx of the demon's chakra moving slowly through his arm before a partial shroud formed around it. Before long, the old man began to see wisps of dark chakra appear from thin air to float aimlessly around the boy's hand. After a long few minutes of more appearing out of thin air, the dark chakra began to whirl and spin into the shape of a small ball, no bigger than a meat bun, floating above Naruto's right palm.

"The **Rasengan...**impossible!" the old man murmured in wide-eyed shock.

"Not really. I still haven't mastered that." Naruto countered as he concentrated on molding the dark chakra into a perfect sphere. The Hokage looked over at his face in surprise.

"If that's not the **Rasengan, **I'll eat my hat."

Naruto chuckled as he strained to maintain the spherical shape of the dense chakra.

"Get your ketchup and mustard ready, then. This is closer to the fox's **Bijuudama **than the **Rasengan. **Though I would say this is a mixture of both, I guess. It's just me doing the first step of **Rasengan **training when I'm using my cloak. For some reason, it forms using any residual demonic chakra around us instead of my own or the fox's chakra."

"You're right. It's not spinning as much. Is that all the chakra from around here?"

Naruto nodded.

"The fox explained to me that demonic chakra is naturally attracted to a strong source of demonic presence. It just needed to be directed. That's how the bijuus seemed to have infinite power. They automatically absorb residual malicious chakra from the environment all the time. Anyway, this is my first time doing this out of the mindscape and I'm going to try to absorb this into my body. I may collapse afterward, so you're welcome to drop my body off at my apartment when this is over."

"Wait! What was the last sentence you just said?" the Third's voice rose in alarm.

Naruto didn't say anything as he let his shroud slowly wrap around and surround the black chakra ball. Upon contact, the ball began to disintegrate into the shroud. With pieces of the dark charka swimming around inside the red shroud, Naruto simply retracted the shroud into his body, absorbing the new chakra in the process. The blonde turned toward the worried Hokage and smiled wide.

"Success."

The world then went black with blinding pain.

**Fifteen Minutes Later**

Sarutobi sighed in relief as his surrogate grandson seemed to have finally stopped trembling and holding in his screams of pain as the body became still. He started to breathe evenly as if he was in a deep sleep. From how much pain Naruto seemed to be in a moment ago, Sarutobi was amazed the boy hadn't let out a loud scream for even a second the entire time. The loudest noise the boy allowed was a low groan.

Bending down to check Naruto's body for any damage and finding none, the Third decided he would at least put the boy's body somewhere more comfortable than on a building's rooftop. He decided Naruto's apartment was out as there was no door and a large window was missing. He made a mental note to have the repairs done at Yugao's expenses in the near future. For now, one place came to mind for his shelter. He grinned almost mischievously as he easily picked the boy up to drape over his back before setting off in a certain direction.

**Ten Minutes Later – Hyuuga Compound**

Hyuuga Hiashi walked toward the compound's main gate with a raised eyebrow. He was busy training his daughters when one of the Branch members suddenly interrupted with a message that the Hokage was waiting for him at the gate.

Opening the gate, he was surprised to see the Hokage, who was smiling gently, with a certain blonde boy on his back. However, he wasn't the Hyuuga clan head for nothing as he kept his features neutral before he bowed slightly and greeted the Hokage.

"Hokage-sama, you honor me and the clan with your presence at our compound. To what do we owe this visit?"

"My apologies, Hiashi-san, for stopping by unannounced. I'll only be a few minutes. I have a small favor to ask of you."

"Certainly. Anything for the Hokage."

"Naruto-kun here fell unconscious due to a side-effect of an incomplete jutsu he was attempting a few minutes ago. However, due to an incident earlier this morning at his apartment, its security has been compromised. We're taking action to remedy that but, in the meantime, I'd like to make sure he's with someone he can trust while he's still in this vulnerable state. Would you be willing to watch over him? It's only until he wakes up."

"Of course. Naruto-san is always welcome here." Hiashi immediately replied as he nodded for one of the gate's guards to retrieve the unconscious boy off the Hokage's back.

"Thank you very much. Have a pleasant day and I'll see you around." the Hokage bowed slightly before walking off in the direction of the Hokage Tower.

As Hiashi and the guard carrying Naruto walked into the compound, the clan head suddenly spoke up.

"Ryushi-san. Please take Naruto-san to Tomoe-san. My daughters are busy training and does not need to know their friend is here in this compound for the time being. Otherwise they would be distracted, especially since he is unconscious. He will be well taken care of by Tomoe-san until then."

The guard, Ryushi, raised an eyebrow.

"Forgive my rudeness, Hiashi-sama, but isn't Tomoe-san hosting a clan-wide meeting for women only in the main hall at this moment?"

Ryushi swore he heard his leader mutter "Even better." but chalked that up to his imagination.

"She would not mind. In fact, I daresay she would be quite welcoming. Please do this and get back to your post." Hiashi commanded almost sternly and Ryushi quickly carried out his orders. As they split up and Hiashi walked back toward his private training grounds alone, one would see his incredibly sadistic smirk if anyone were nearby.

**Early afternoon at the apartment of Yugao and Anko**

"Ow...what the hell hit me?" Mitarashi Anko croaked as she finally woke up, sitting up on the couch as she clutched at her forehead with both hands. As she did this, the blanket that was draped over her last night fell off, exposing her chest still clad in her purple-laced bra.

"I would say a potent drug combined with a couple nasty hits to your stomach from lowlifes." a voice spoke from next to her. Anko stiffened for a moment before realizing who the voice belonged to. She let out a sigh as she turned to look at her surrogate older sister, Yugao, sitting on a chair next to the couch. She was dressed in a normal t-shirt and sport shorts, her usual outfit to get comfortable in when she was home. There was no way she would allow Anko to see what she came home in so she immediately discarded the outfit Naruto lent to her. Thankfully only one or two people saw her on the way home as she exclusively took the rooftops.

"Did they...?" Anko let the question hang in the air as she nervously looked at the floor next to the couch. The memories of last night were coming back to her. She didn't feel anything physically wrong with herself other than a slightly sore and bruised stomach, but that didn't mean anything until she got full confirmation. To her immense relief, Yugao quickly shook her head no. After letting relief flood her, Anko instinctively drew her blanket up to cover her chest as if to protect herself from imaginary monsters. She trembled slightly at such a close call as she dug through her memories some more. Seeing her sister start to withdraw into herself, Yugao put a comforting hand on her shoulder.

"You were lucky, Anko-chan." _In more ways than one. If it wasn't for the Kyuubi's chakra being in you, Naruto-san would never have sensed you being in trouble and these scums would have had all the time with you. In a way, your curse mark saved you from a terrible experience after trying its best to make you suffer for five years. If that's not the definition of irony, then what is?_

"Who saved me? I remember a voice interrupting those bastards just when I passed out." Anko murmured more to herself than to her surrogate sister as she searched her memories deeply for any clue on who was her savior.

_Ok, now's the time to start the bullshit. You better appreciate this, Naruto-san. _Yugao grumbled in her head.

"Sorry, Anko-chan. A patrolling ANBU found you alone and unconscious in the alley. There were no one else. Apparently whoever saved you took his or her battle elsewhere." Yugao lied smoothly. All the training she had with the ANBU had to at least count for something today after being unable to put down a ten-year-old boy. A very strong ten-year-old boy perhaps, but still a boy nonetheless.

Anko narrowed her eyes slightly.

_Yugao-nee may think she's a great liar but the slight twitching of her right eyelid gave it away. I think my training in interrogation for the T&I department is working out great! _Anko thought excitedly as she figured out ways to trap Yugao and catch her red-handed. She then decided that, with her sister, she'd go the simple route.

"I find that hard to believe. There were five guys around me. This person must've been quite strong to be able to get them all away from me." Anko had to fight to hide her devious smirk at springing the trap as she watched Yugao slowly forget about keeping up her cover story while her expression became puzzled.

"Wait a minute, I was told there were three-"

"Gotcha." Anko simply said with a victorious smile.

"Goddammit!" Yugao groaned as she smacked both her palms to her forehead hard. She understood how Naruto felt earlier when she pulled the same trick on him.

"So there was a witness at least. Tell me who it was that saved me. I know you have that information." Anko said firmly with no humor now.

"I can't do that, Anko-chan. The person requested to remain anonymous." Yugao replied just as seriously.

"I don't give a shit about what was requested! I want to know who it is so I can repay this person and I would do almost anything! It doesn't matter if it was a request, tell me the identity now!" Anko almost shouted at her 'sister'. She had no patience to deal with anyone dancing around the answer when she wanted it straight up. Yugao sighed dejectedly and decided to just get the revelation about Anko's now non-existent curse mark out of the way The sooner she dealt with this, the faster they'd get it out of the way.

"Maybe that person's right. If you're already this adamant about repaying your savior, I wonder how you're going to be when you find out the same person removed the curse mark."

For a moment, it seemed like Anko didn't hear what Yugao just said but her light brown pupil-less eyes slowly shrank in size as the younger woman seemed to be repeatedly going over every word that her older sister had just said to her. She instinctively reached up with a hand toward her neck where the curse mark used to be.

"You're lying." Anko quietly said with such conviction that Yugao was almost inclined to believe that the mark somehow reappeared without her noticing.

"Why are you lying? This is a sick joke, Yugao-nee." Anko's voice dripped with betrayal and Yugao immediately felt hurt that her surrogate sister would think right away she'd hurt her purposely.

"I'm not, Anko-chan. You just woke up so you probably haven't noticed that the side-effects of the mark disappeared. If you need further proof, go look in the mirror." Yugao suggested as she looked intently at Anko for her reactions. The younger woman's lips trembled while her eyes started to water and her hand started to shake over where the curse mark was on her neck.

"It has to be a trick. There's no way it just disappeared. I've been living with this for five years and it just disappears one night while I wasn't even awake for it!? There's no way it could be that easy!" Anko's face twisted into despair as she strained to not allow herself to believe this new reality.

"Look. In. The. Mirror." Yugao simply ordered firmly. Anko shook her head violently like a child, her pineapple-styled purple hair swaying.

"I-I-I can't! W-what if this is an illusion!?" her voice cracked as her eyes trembled with desperation.

"It's not. I'll be right there next to you, ok?" Yugao's gentle voice soothed as she slowly took her younger sister's hand in hers. It broke her heart to feel Anko's hand tremble violently in her grip as she continued to fight against the new reality. She knew how Anko felt. She had been so traumatized by being tainted with this curse mark that she had believed firmly that it would be with her for the rest of her life and had given up on any hope of getting rid of it years ago. For it to just disappear one day was a reality that Anko never dreamed of at all. She just wasn't able to bring herself to accept that, finally, something had gone right for her. Yugao slowly stood up and gently pulled Anko up with her, letting her blanket fall off. She then gently pulled the half-naked and near-catatonic younger woman toward the bathroom.

Every once in a while, Anko would tug at her grip as if she wanted to break free and stay as far away from any mirror as possible. Yugao would not allow that as she then pushed the increasingly resisting Anko through the bathroom door, both of her hands firmly on the younger girl's bare shoulders. Just as they stood in front of the mirror above the sink, Anko closed her eyes tightly and twisted around in Yugao's grip so that she buried her face in the taller woman's chest like a child would, still refusing to look at the mirror as if she would be cursed again if she did.

Yugao sighed exasperatedly. She smiled gently down at her sister as she began removing the hair clip holding Anko's hair up into its usual pineapple style as it was frazzled and disheveled from last night. Anko seemed to have calmed down almost immediately in the older woman's embrace when she felt her long hair fall freely down her back and Yugao started to rake a hand through it to smooth it over. Yugao always knew the best way to calm Anko down was to play with her beautiful purple hair. If one were to look at the women right now, he or she would believe without any doubt they were sisters by blood with their long purple hair flowing down their backs and the long bangs framing their faces.

"Anko-chan, I always knew from the moment I met you in that lab that you would be one of the most beautiful women in this village. Perhaps in the entire Elemental Nations." Yugao cooed like a mother down at Anko, who scoffed lightly against her chest. Yugao smiled amusedly. At least she was listening.

"There was just one thing I didn't like." Yugao continued in her gentle voice. Anko stiffened slightly in the embrace but Yugao continued to soothe her nerves as she kept on raking her hand through the younger girl's long and silky hair.

"It was that ugly and evil mark on your neck left by a monster who I hate with all my being for putting such a wonderful person like you through hell. You didn't deserve anything that happened to you the past eight years since the night you left the village. None of it. That's why I am so proud of you for toughing it out through everything since you came back to the village. I have always hoped your life would turn around someday and I believe that day has come today." Yugao spoke quietly as she gently turned Anko around in her grip to have her face the mirror. Anko's eyes were still tightly closed but she didn't seem as nervous as before.

"Without the mark on you, I can say with certainty you're the most beautiful young woman in the nations now." Yugao whispered in one of Anko's ears as she lifted Anko's long hair away from her long and delicate neck, clearly showing the smooth and unblemished skin where the mark would have been. At that point, Anko's eyes slowly fluttered open. Anko remained still as her eyes focused on the spot where the curse mark was. Yugao could see her eyes widen as Anko finally saw the new reality staring her in the face.

"It...it's true. I-I don't see it." Anko's whisper-quiet voice trembled as her eyes focused on her neck. Just to be sure, her eyes searched the rest of her exposed torso in the mirror to confirm that the mark simply hasn't moved elsewhere. She brought her hand up to rub at the spot on her neck with her fingers carefully, afraid she would make it reappear if she was rough.

"It really is gone. I can't believe it." Anko's lips slowly lifted and parted into a truly happy smile that Yugao rarely saw on her younger sister. Happy tears flowed freely down Anko's cheeks.

"I can't believe it..." Anko trailed off as she broke down crying. Yugao simply hugged her tightly from behind as Anko wailed louder. Anko's knees gave out so Yugao sat down on the floor with her back against the bathtub across from the sink to allow Anko to cuddle up between her legs against her chest as the long-suffering teenage girl continued to let out all of the misery she had to hold in for five years. Yugao allowed herself a few tears of relief as she rested her chin on top of Anko's head and listened to her beloved little sister's cries filling the small bathroom.

**Some time later at the Hyuuga compound**

After she finished her daily training, Hinata heard from her father that Naruto had been here in the compound for a while. After momentarily surprising her father with her furious glare for not knowing about her beloved Naruto sooner, she rushed over to the main hall. Bursting through the doors into the meeting hall, her white eyes came upon a large group of Hyuuga women surrounding someone, although she couldn't tell who it was without using her Byakugan. The women looked over at the new arrival before all of them grinned mischievously as they bowed to the clan heiress.

"Welcome, Lady Hinata. I presume you came here for Uzumaki-sama. He's over there." one of them said, pointing toward the center of the group. Thanking her, the heiress worked her way through the crowd carefully to come upon a strange sight.

Naruto was lying unconscious on a large cushion on the floor surrounded on all sides by five or six Hyuuga women of all age and size as they cuddled up to whatever they could hold on to. From time to time, some of the women that were standing around the cuddling women would step in and complain that it was their turn to cuddle up to the boy. Some of them even got into arguments. Hinata just stared at all of this with a deadpanned expression, having no words to express her emotions at the surreal sight she just saw. The Hyuuga women finally saw Hinata staring at them with a neutral expression and they stopped what they were doing, waiting for their heiress' reaction. Tomoe, not noticing Hinata yet, popped her head up from cuddling alongside Naruto's right leg.

"See? I told you Uzumaki-sama makes the perfect teddy bear! You all just can't keep your hands off him, can you?" she exclaimed before she squawked in surprise at seeing Hinata standing over her with a stony expression.

"L-l-lady Hinata?" Tomoe could only say as she stared guiltly up at the young Hyuuga girl.

"Tomoe-san..." Hinata trailed off with her long bangs shadowing her eyes.

"Y-yes?"

"Move over."

"P-pardon?"

"That's my spot. All of you can fight over the rest." Hinata spoke confidently with a glare. Tomoe and the rest of the women burst out laughing after a long moment of realizing what their recently shy heiress had just said. Tomoe was only too happy to relinquish the spot.

A few moments after Hinata settled into her favorite spot, Naruto stirred awake without anyone noticing.

"Hinata-chan?" his low voice called out. He somehow knew Hinata was with him even if he wasn't totally aware of his predicament yet.

"Eep!" Hinata jolted in surprise as she became bright red and very still clutching on tightly around Naruto's right leg. The other women jumped in surprise too, though they were still very reluctant to let go of Naruto as well.

Naruto were looking at all the women surrounding him with a confused expression before realization dawned on him.

"Let me guess. Jiji-san dropped me off here at your compound."

A nod from Hinata.

"Your dad took me in and decided he would leave me here to be 'taken care of' by all of you."

This time, all the women nodded with pink cheeks. Naruto became still with a blank expression for a long moment, making the tension rise a little. Then all the women face-faulted when Naruto just shrugged his shoulders lazily.

"Whatever... I'll just prank them later. This is actually pretty comfortable. Have your fun." With that, he went back to sleep and the women burst into activity as they began to argue over who would next touch their 'teddy bear'.

**Back at Anko's apartment**

"I still want to know." Anko suddenly spoke up for the first time after her crying stopped long time ago. She and Yugao just spent their time hugging each other on the bathroom floor since then.

"Nope."

"Yugao-neeeee!" Anko whined as she looked up at Yugao's face with her puppy eyes. It might have worked if Anko's eyes weren't puffy and red with dark tear streaks running down her cheeks.

"That won't work on me. This person specifically asked not to be identified. While I don't agree with that, I have to respect it. If it makes you feel better, the person said you'll know after some time. Just not right now." Yugao explained, but Anko still had an impatient frown on her face.

"Why bother hiding it from me at this moment then?"

"You should know why, Anko-chan."

"What? That I said I was going to perform oral sex a hundred times in a row, and then I would glady give up my virginity, including my ass, as we fuck like rabbits for an entire month?" Anko said all of this with a straight face.

"It greatly disturbs me that what you just said is very tame compared to the last time you described how you'd 'thank' whoever took the seal off. And what if it was a female?" Yugao deadpanned.

"Strap-on." Anko simply said as if it was obvious, making Yugao blush, before she continued. "I was under the influence of the curse mark. Right now I'm just being sane and rational about how much I should owe for getting the seal off."

"And that is precisely why your savior didn't want to be identified. He doesn't want you to feel like you owe him anything."

"I suppose so but I don't care. Thank you for telling me it was a he, though." Anko grinned impishly to Yugao's annoyance at revealing yet another bit of information by accident.

"Alright, you leave me no choice, Anko-chan. I'm pulling rank."

Anko gasped.

"You can't, Yugao-nee!"

"I can and I will. I'm forbidding you from finding out more about this guy. It's an S-ranked secret only jounin and ANBU know anyway."

"No, I mean, you really can't. You're an ANBU and I'm still a regular nin. Technically, you don't exist in the shinobi force so you can't really command me except when the old man says so. Unless you get reinstated." Anko teased with a smirk.

"Dammit. When did you get smart?" Yugao sighed. "In any case, some parts of this incident are still part of an S-ranked secret. Even if I don't command you, you're still not allowed to know who he is on orders of Hokage-sama, _Chunin _Mitarashi Anko." Yugao tried to be firm but wasn't able to pull it off as she still showed amusement at Anko's stubbornness about this. Anko wasn't fazed by Yugao's 'threat'.

"It doesn't matter whatever you say. I'm going to find out and if I have to ride your ass about this every day until you break, I will do it." Anko challenged. Yugao smirked.

"Try it. For now, I think I'll have a little fun!" Yugao suddenly exclaimed before she started tickling Anko, who was still cuddling against Yugao and wasn't prepared for the sudden attack. Anko shrieked in laughter as the two women wrestled around playfully on the bathroom floor.

**A week and half later, four days before Naruto leaves for his third trip**

"Hokage-sama, you have to do something about Anko-chan!" Yugao's tired voice echoed across the Hokage's office as she entered through the door in full ANBU outfit. The Hokage raised an eyebrow as he looked up from the paperwork he was doing. If he could look underneath Yugao's mask, he would have seen bags under her eyes and a sickly hue to her skin.

"Whatever did Anko-chan do, Neko-san?" the Third said almost amusedly, having a good idea of what was going on.

"I'm about to break! She's been constantly hounding me ever since that day. She kept finding ways to try to make me slip up and wouldn't let me get enough sleep. I don't think I can take it anymore at this rate! Either I tell her now or I break down and stab her repeatedly." Yugao's voice cracked on the last sentence, as if to show she was barely hanging by a thread.

"I see! So that's how she found out I also know about her savior's identity a few days ago." Hokage exclaimed lazily as if he uncovered an obvious clue. Yugao flinched before bowing deeply.

"I'm sorry, Hokage-sama. She just is very good at drawing out bits of information one at a time."

"I don't blame you. Ibiki-san has been telling me Anko-chan is the most promising interrogator to come out of the T&I department in a long while."

Yugao chuckled nervously.

"How do you know she knows? She hasn't threatened you into revealing it to her or anything, has she?" she looked ready to apologize deeply for whatever her little sister may have done.

"Oh, nothing that drastic. I don't know what she has been doing with you but she has been hinting to me that as long as I withhold the information from her, she would go insane with frustration." Sarutobi paused briefly before continuing.

"Quite frankly, she has a creative imagination. I almost think she was going crazy slowly for real."

"Hokage-sama, what did she do?" Yugao asked with trepidation in her voice.

"For one thing, she has been completing her missions in odd ways. Like the delivery mission the other day in which she forced her client to dance a jig while screaming unintelligibly before she would give him the package. Yesterday, she passed out several copies of Jiraiya-kun's books to the children of the village she was guarding from some bandits, saying they were great books for children. Needless to say I received a strongly worded letter from the client this morning."

"Ooohh nooo, Anko-chan..." Yugao groaned as she slapped both her hands to her forehead in shame for her little sister.

"In addition to that, she's been spending a lot of her free time at that window." Hokage pointed to one of the windows on the right wall of his office. Yugao was confused as she carefully looked over at the window the Hokage indicated before she stiffened in shock. On the window were clearly identifiable face and hand prints belonging to Anko.

"She would spend the time pressing her face and hands against the window as if she was looking through a window into a toy story and just stare at me. Even when the ANBU shooed her off, she would come back not long after." the Hokage finished as he suppressed a small shiver. He had seen many horrors in his long life but seeing Anko's face staring at him soullessly through the window all day certainly was in the top five.

Yugao stood still as she contemplated the extent Anko was going to go to find out this information about Naruto.

"I say we forget our promise to Naruto-san." Yugao spoke immediately with no regret in her voice for the blonde.

"Agreed. Which is why I just sent Anko-chan out on an A-ranked interrogation mission with Ibiki-san today. She should be back in three days." the Third smirked as leaned back in his chair.

Yugao was about to ask what that had to do with giving up on their promise to Naruto when she realized something. The Hokage could feel Yugao smirk evilly underneath her mask.

"Getting one over Naruto-san and the stupid council at the same time...that's going to be a great day! May I have the office guard duty that day to see this?"

The Hokage nodded with a smile.

**Day before Naruto leaves for his training**

Mitarashi Anko entered the Hokage's office with a slight spring to her step. The Hokage saw that Anko seemed to be in a really good mood as if she had the best day ever.

"Welcome back, Anko-chan. I see that your mission went well." the Hokage leaned back in his chair.

"Yup! Turns out one of the targets looked very similar to one of the bastards that attacked me two weeks ago. Ibiki-san let me have him to myself while he took care of the others." Anko's innocent-looking smile grew even wider at that, if that was possible. The Hokage shivered and made a note to himself not to piss this woman off.

"I see. Did you get any information?"

"Of course, old man! He gave everything up since his birth until Ibiki-san told me to tone it down."

Another cold shiver went down the old man's spine. For even making the most hardened interrogator tell someone to tone down the interrogation had to mean Ibiki had seen horrors he would never forget at the hands of this young woman.

"Anyway, I'm going to go home and bug Yugao-nee some more so here's the mission rep-" Anko was interrupted when the Hokage held his hand out for silence. She was in the process of taking the stamped mission scroll out of a pocket on her flak jacket when she was stopped. Anko put on a cute confused pout as she cocked her head to the side, her pineapple-styled hair swaying with the movement.

"Hold off on officially completing the mission. Let me get someone here so please wait a moment, Anko-chan." The Hokage snapped his fingers for an ANBU to appear.

"Get me Naruto-kun."

**Ten minutes later**

Naruto appeared pushing the office door open loudly.

"What's up, Ji-" whatever the blonde was going to say died in his throat as he noticed Anko standing in front of the Hokage's desk. She was looking at him quizzically.

Naruto was about to run back out of the office when the door closed behind him. Jolting in surprise at the sound of the door closing, he looked behind himself to see a certain purple-haired ANBU with a hand on the door knob. He narrowed his eyes at her as he practically felt the vicious smirk underneath her cat mask.

Naruto knew right away what this meeting was about but he couldn't escape if Yugao and the Hokage was going to keep him here. Sighing in defeat, he walked up to stand next to the still confused-looking Anko.

"Alright, let's get this over with, you backstabbing old bastard." Naruto grumbled as he crossed his arms over his chest. Anko whipped her head toward the blonde with wide-eyed surprise. Even she thought she was getting away with it a little when she was calling the powerful leader of Konoha 'old man'.

"Ah, Naruto-kun, your cruel words cut me deep." the Hokage said with mock hurt on his face.

"Shall I throw him in the cell?" the cat-masked Yugao teased from behind Anko and the blonde. Anko was looking all over the place in growing confusion.

"Just what the hell is going on!?" she demanded. Sarutobi chuckled for a moment before schooling his face in a neutral expression.

"First, we'll begin with this, Anko-chan. You have shown outstanding abilities as a kunoichi in most areas, especially in interrogation, taijutsu, weapons, and assassination. In addition, you have been getting much stronger over the past two weeks. Truth be told, were it only up to me, you would have been a jounin long ago." the Hokage smiled as Anko slightly blushed at the praise she was getting. She knew she was getting stronger now thanks to the seal being removed. It wasn't holding her back any more and she allowed herself to go all out without worrying about any backlash from the mark. While she was a long way from fully matching up to an elite like Kakashi or Gai, she would be able to at least give them a run for their money for a while before they overpowered her.

"However, unfortunately for you, the jounin judges and the council would not bring themselves to overlook your past and simply evaluate your current skills as they should." the Third noticed Anko stiffen at the mention of her past and she was looking nervously over at Naruto, who was watching the whole process with a neutral expression. _Anko-chan doesn't care if the entire village knew her past but she was worried about this one young boy knowing it. I wonder why._

"Which is why I'm thankful that there is an obscure old law from the Second Great War that hadn't been repealed yet. Granted, not many know about the law and I intend to keep it that way. It's why I stopped you from officially reporting your mission as complete." the Hokage smiled as Anko's confused expression started to clear away when she seemed to have realized where this conversation was going. Even Naruto, upset as he was, smiled in support for Anko. The Third continued.

"It allows for the Hokage or the Jounin Commander to do a field promotion of any chunin to jounin in an active B-rank mission or higher if there was a recommendation from the chunin's commander as well. It just so happens I have a letter here from Morino Ibiki strongly praising your abilities and asking for an immediate promotion to the rank of a full jounin, and I agree too." the Hokage declared happily as he pulled out a paper with Anko's promotion order on it and signed it.

It took a moment for the news to hit Anko as she stared at the Hokage with a neutral expression before her lips slowly formed into a bright smile then she started hopping around.

"Yes! I did it! Take that, you council cocksuckers!" Anko yelled loudly as she flipped a bird in the general direction of the council chamber. Afterward, she quickly hugged Yugao tightly and then picked the protesting Naruto up and swung him around. Even Naruto had to laugh happily after a few seconds, however.

"Wait." Anko suddenly stopped-mid celebration as she held Naruto still in the air with one of her legs bent at her knee, demonstrating her amazing balance on just one foot. She seemed to have remembered something. Naruto, meanwhile, was muttering "Oh crap." as he struggled to get out of Anko's surprisingly strong grip.

"Now that I'm jounin, who the hell did it? Who saved me?" Anko looked over at the Hokage with a glare that would not allow anyone to avoid the issue anymore. Fortunately for her, the Third don't intend to drag this out any longer. He simply pointed at Naruto, who was now trying to sneak out one of the office's windows and froze when everyone's attention was on him. For a moment, Anko was stunned that it was this boy who saved her from the men and broke her curse mark. She then was surprised Naruto managed to get out of her grip as she checked her now empty hands still up in the air mid-celebration. Then she got annoyed that he would run away from her. She quickly flipped her hand out toward Naruto and several snakes shot out of her shirt's sleeve.

"**Sen'eijashu(Hidden Shadow Snake Hands)!" **Anko shouted authoritatively as the snakes wrapped themselves around the boy's limbs just when he was jumping out of the window. Naruto gulped just before the snakes pulled him back in. Anko pulled the struggling blonde along the floor toward her and then she picked him up by his collar when he was at her feet.

"So, gaki, care to tell me why you were running away from sweet ol' me?" Anko sweetly asked with a sweet but fake smile plastered across her face now inches from Naruto's comically sweating face. Yugao snorted behind her mask.

"Maybe it's because you sent your snakes after him?" she innocently interjected. Anko glared across at her older sister.

"It's not my fault my secret admirer is so shy. Now, you understand you've freed me from five years of pain and misery and it would've kept going for a long time to come too. You also saved me from these bastards. You have no idea how how much I appreciate that, gaki." Anko spoke softly as she brought Naruto closer, her brown eyes boring intensely into his bright blue ones. Naruto simply smiled knowingly, which made the Hokage and Yugao stiffen.

"I'm glad one of us will be able to start moving on from the past." Naruto replied mysteriously. Anko was confused as to what Naruto meant by that but she knew the other two in the room understood the meaning as they shifted very uncomfortably. Before she could inquire about this however, Naruto spoke up as he released himself from Anko's grip.

"Just a thank you is fine. I didn't want to see you suffering so much under that awful seal and I just happened to have a way of removing it when I saved you so I did it. I'm not looking for anything from you except our continued friendship." Naruto said with a gentle smile. Anko sighed.

"I was going to just ignore what you just said and try my best to repay you for far more than that. I probably would have been very adamant about it if this was right after you took the mark off. But, now that I've had two weeks to think over this and calm down a little, I suppose I'll just take you up on your offer to continue keeping in touch in the future. Besides, I can't ignore your request when you smile like that." Anko smiled back as gently before she bent down and wrapped her arms around his neck for a deep hug, making the boy blush slightly as he felt her chest on his, even though it was buffered by her padded flak jacket.

"Thank you so much. You saved my honor and you got that mark off me. Even after all that, you still never asked for anything in return. Thank you." her voice trembled as she spoke next to the boy's ear. Naruto nodded before wrapping his arms around her to hug her back.

After a few minutes, Anko had a mischievous twinkle in her eyes as she whispered into his ear. "However, I may change my mind about your 'reward' when you get a few years older. You're going to be very easy on the eyes, I can tell. I wouldn't mind if my first time is with you, you know." she teased before leaving a ghost of a peck on his neck and releasing the boy to reveal a wide-eyed Naruto with a blush on his cheeks that rivaled the best of Hinata's blushes. Anko chuckled while Yugao and the Hokage wondered what she said to him.

"I'm curious as to how you got the seal off me, though." Anko put on a thoughtful expression.

"I'm afraid that's classified even for a jounin. Only Naruto-kun and I know." the Hokage quickly cut in, making sure to leave Yugao out so Anko would not try anything with her. Yugao and the Hokage face-faulted when Anko just shrugged as if she didn't care when they were expecting her to doggedly go after this information like she did about her savior's identity.

"Oh well. Who cares? I don't give a flying fuck because the mark's gone!" Anko said in a sing-song tone as she skipped in a circle around the room. The other three occupants of this office sweatdropped. Naruto then turned to the Hokage to whisper.

"Oi, Jiji-san. You sure I didn't do something else to her when I broke the seal? Maybe I damaged her brain or something?"

"I heard that!" Anko shouted indignantly.

A few minutes later after Anko had dropped her mission scroll off, she left with Yugao to celebrate her promotion with a lot of dango. However, not before promising Naruto she would see him again to discuss how he rescued her in detail, among other things. Naruto, who was asked to stay behind with the Third, suddenly spoke up.

"So what else is there to talk about?" He then got a shiver down his spine when he saw the Third's lips form into a knowing smile.

"While I really am happy that you freed Anko-chan from her suffering, I still believe you were a bit too reckless about removing it."

Kurama, realizing something was off in the Hokage's office, tried to speak up.

_**Naruto-**_

But Naruto seemed oblivious to her voice in his head at this moment as he continued.

"I don't see anyone else being successful at taking it off." Naruto crossed his arms and narrowed his eyes.

"Be that as it may be, I believe Jiraiya-kun taught you to approach every seal with delicacy."

_**Naruto, there's-**_

"He even tried to relate it to making love to a girl, too. Though I didn't understand what that damn pervert even said at that time." Naruto said with a chuckle, still not really hearing the fox's increasingly alarmed voice.

"Would you think he'd be pleased with how you took care of Anko-chan's seal?" the Hokage said with a knowing smirk. Naruto let out a snort.

_**Oi! **_

"Hell no! He'd kick my ass into next week! But he doesn't have to know that, does he?" Naruto nervously said as he hoped the Hokage would drop this.

_**OI!**_

_What? _Naruto seemed to have finally realized Kurama was speaking to him.

_**There's someone behind you, moron! **_

Naruto felt his insides go ice-cold as the Hokage looked up behind the boy.

"Well, Naruto-kun said that. How do you intend to respond, Jiraiya-kun?"

Naruto whirled around to see the large white-haired man looming over him. The Toad Sage's presence felt like it was more overpowering than even the Kyuubi's at that moment as he glared coldly down at the shrinking blonde boy. His lips, thin with anger, slowly moved upward into a cold smile.

"Well, well, my little godson has been a naughty little boy while I was gone. I think I will have to teach you a lesson." Jiraiya's voice rumbled as he continued to stare down at the boy.

_**Ok, that guy scares the shit out of me right now. I'm going to sign off for a while and hope you survive. Farewell.**_

_Why did I just have a feeling of deja-vu right now? _Naruto thought off-handedly before he, in an increasingly rare moment of stupidity as of late, decided to stand up to his very powerful godfather.

"Well, how are you going to do that, Ero-sennin?" Naruto challenged with a nervous but brave look. Jiraiya chuckled evilly as he raised a hand, holding something in it. It was a long stick that looked oddly familiar to the blonde. Naruto stepped back in shock when realization struck him.

"My Nads Crusher! How'd you get it?" Naruto tremblingly exclaimed as he took another step back when Jiraiya raised the stick threateningly.

"Doesn't matter. Stay and take your punishment like a man, gaki!" Jiraiya shouted before stepping toward the boy.

"That'll keep me from becoming a man!" Naruto yelled as he jumped over Jiraiya's lunge and dashed for the open window. The blonde thought he got free as he jumped outside when he heard a loud voice.

"**Kuchiyose no Jutsu(Summoning)!" **Jiraiya's voice shouted before a pop was heard. In the next instant, Naruto was stopped mid-air outside the window as a long and slimy red tongue wrapped itself around his torso and pulled the screaming boy back into the office. In the next moment, the Hokage stepped up to the window to close it to contain what was sure to be a lot of shrill screaming for the next hour in the office.

**Next morning near the main gate**

"Fuck you to hell." Naruto cursed out the tall white-haired man next to him for the twentieth time that morning as he tried to shake off a limp due to the lingering pain in his groin.

Jiraiya merely grinned.

"I'll get you for this." the blonde vowed darkly just as the two arrived at the main gate. They were surprised to see someone waiting there this early in the morning.

Mitarashi Anko was waiting with a travel bag at her feet, as if she was awaiting someone to meet her. What stunned the men was her new wardrobe. She was wearing a full body mesh armor that went down to her thighs with a tight-fitting flesh-colored shirt underneath. She put on a pair of shin guards along with a new pair of open toed ninja sandals instead of her old combat boots. She also wore an orange-colored miniskirt even shorter than the black miniskirts she was wearing before and, to top it off, she put on an open tan trench coat over everything. The only thing that remained the same was her pineapple-styled hair and her hitai-ate in its usual place on her forehead, almost hidden by her long bangs. To say her new outfit didn't leave much to imagination would be very accurate, as evidenced by a nosebleed coming out of Jiraiya's nose as he stared openly at the woman. Even Naruto was sporting a blush. Anko finally saw the two men and smiled brightly before moving in front of them.

"Hello! Jounin Mitarashi Anko reporting for duty as your escort this summer! Now I know why you're so strong for your age, gaki. You got one of the freakin' Sannin training you!" she declared cheerfully before she became confused by the men's silence. She noticed them staring at her in stunned disbelief.

"What's wrong, boys? Oh! You like my new jounin outfit? I admit it might be too..._Saucy. For. You. Boys_." Anko slowly spoke the last four words seductively as she exaggeratedly strutted her body in front of the men.

At this point, both men snapped out of their trace and shook their heads at the same time. They then 'slapped' the air as if doing a tsukkomi.

"No, no. We're wondering what the hell you're doing here." they deadpanned at the same time in perfect harmony, though they were still sporting blushes from seeing Anko like that. This caused Anko to slump over dejectedly.

"The old man didn't tell you? I volunteered myself and he gave me permission to go with you." Anko grumbled as she took out a scroll to toss to Jiraiya, who caught it easily in one hand.

"She's right. Well, welcome aboard, Anko-san." Jiraiya greeted after taking a moment to read the scroll and tossed it back.

Naruto felt some apprehension at letting Anko come along on the trip, considering the sensitive nature of his training and, as far as he knew, she didn't know anything about his jinchuuriki status as of yesterday. On the other hand, he felt like he could trust her with his secret, considering she experienced something similar to his life. The Hokage apparently trusted Anko well enough to allow her to tag along on this trip. She just became a jounin and it was okay to learn Naruto's secret. What better way to learn that than straight from the source?

"Alright, you two. Let's get going. We're taking a detour before we go to the secret training ground." Jiraiya's deep voice snapped Naruto out of his thought. His expression suddenly became dark at the mention of the new destination. Anko noticed this before she slapped Naruto on his shoulder somewhat hard.

"Gaki, what's wrong? You don't look too happy." Anko's slightly tactless attitude annoyed Jiraiya as he wanted to protect his godson from further pain of having to dwell on this issue any more than needed. He was about to admonish the girl when Naruto put his hand up for reassurance.

"It's okay, Ero-sennin. I trust her enough. We're going to where my parents died."

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**I hope this chapter is well-recieved by y'all. Remember, the only way I'd ever know if you have any issue with how I'm writing this story is to leave a review with your explanation and constructive criticism. Next chapter, we'll see some more training and some Anko and Naruto moments. Chapter 13 is what I believe will start this story off on a somewhat faster pace and I think that'll probably be my favorite chapter in this story for a while. You'll just have to wait and see what I have in store for poor Naruto. *evil smile***


	12. New Friendships and Cinnamon Buns

**Bet you weren't expecting this chapter to show up so quickly after the last one, am I right? I love keeping my readers on their toes. Now they're not sure if they're going to wait days or weeks for the next chapter. Muhahahaha! **

**Anyway, the usual thanks goes to LoverofLemons for some great ideas in this chapter. The other beta-reader has departed so hopefully you won't see a drop in the grammatical quality from the last chapter since I tried my best to watch out for these errors by myself.**

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**WARNING: This story will contain mature language, sexual themes, and graphic depictions of violence and gore.**

**DISCLAIMER: I do not own Naruto or any of its characters.**

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**Chapter 12: New Friendships and Cinnamon Buns**

**Flashback to yesterday afternoon in Hokage's office**

"You're a real demon, teme-sennin." Naruto grumbled as he gingerly applied a bag of ice to his groin. He was laying on the couch in the corner of the office, facing up. The object of his current ire, Jiraiya, was sitting next to him in a chair.

The Toad Sage chuckled at Naruto's temporary nickname for him.

"It was just a light tap. I'm not stupid enough to jeopardize the future of two lost clans. The rest of the time was just me spanking your cute little butt to humiliate you. Just be happy I didn't do it in front of those two purple-haired beauties."

"A light tap!? Any more and it would have been chakra-powered!" Naruto shouted with a comically angry expression.

"Just remember I regularly get chakra-powered kicks and stomps to my balls every time I'm caught doing my 'research'." Jiraiya finished with a perverted leer on the last word.

"You'll get no sympathy from me. None at all, teme-sennin." Naruto quickly replied with a deadpan expression. Jiraiya's right eye twitched at getting no respect from his student as usual.

"Anyway, I figure you've learned enough not to be so reckless about this. You're lucky that hebi-teme was too arrogant to think his curse seal was breakable. Otherwise he would have incorporated a death seal into the main array to instantly kill Anko-san the moment it sensed the array dissolving. I'll let this slide due to the fact you're still inexperienced and it was in the heat of the moment. Just please think more about studying any seal that could affect human lives more closely next time." Jiraiya lectured with a serious expression.

Naruto became sober at the fact that he did actually risk Anko's life with this. He shivered as the thought of Anko dying in his arms instead of sleeping contentedly went through his mind. He let out a shuddering sigh to expel that from his mind. It was no use dwelling on what didn't happen but he decided he would at least be more careful next time.

"I understand, Jiraiya-sensei." Naruto murmured quietly as he stared up at the ceiling. Jiraiya nodded, satisfied that the boy truly understood due to Naruto addressing him respectfully.

"Now, we need to keep this quiet from that hebi-teme. There's nothing he hates more than failures, especially when it's one of his own 'masterpieces'. He would do anything to eliminate any outside variable, and that includes killing you. Be careful if you ever have to deal with him in the future." Jiraiya advised, his gaze steady on Naruto's. Naruto nodded firmly before he groaned and adjusted the ice bag on his groin some more.

"Anyway, where'd Jiji-san go?" Naruto asked now that he noticed the absence of the Third Hokage in the office.

"Sensei said he remembered something and went somewhere. We're to wait for him."

On that cue, the office door swung open to admit the Third Hokage carrying a giant dust-covered scroll into the office.

"I must be going senile with old age. I can't believe I didn't think of this for two weeks until now." Sarutobi grumbled as he put the scroll down on the floor in the center of the office. Jiriaya's eyes bulged out when he had a close look at the scroll's kanji. Naruto sat up on the couch, watching this scene with curiousity.

"Sarutobi-sensei! I-is t-that-?" Jiraiya pointed lamely at the scoll. Sarutobi nodded with a smirk as he applied his blood to the seal on it. In the next instant, the scroll unfurled itself to show ten storage arrays for weapons. Naruto stood up and limped over to stand by his godfather.

"Ero-sennin, what's this? You look like you're about to go fangirl over this." Naruto pointed out Jiraiya's childishly excited expression as he watched his former sensei do his work on the scroll.

"You fool! This is an honor that only few had! Sensei along with the two Elders are probably the only ones currently alive who have seen these weapons! I never thought they'd come out of storage in my lifetime." Jiraiya admonished his student.

While this was going on, the Third slammed his hand on the main seal array connected to all ten weapon arrays. Large smoke exploded from the scroll with a pop and nearly filled up the office for a moment. The Hokage and Jiraiya heard Naruto cry out in discomfort and looked over at the boy when the smoke cleared to see Naruto squinting in pain with his arms up in front of his face as if to defend himself from an invisible force.

"I can really feel the fox's chakra. Whatever they are, they're practically radiating it." Naruto winced as he forced himself to get used to the overpowering presence in the air.

"That makes sense. Naruto-kun, what you're looking at are the ten weapons that were recovered from Hashirama-sensei's battle with Uchiha Madara. The First Hokage used these weapons against him and the Kyuubi in that battle." the Hokage explained.

At this point Naruto recovered enough to have a close look at the weapons. He noted nine different swords of varying designs and sizes. One of them was twice his size. Another was a small tanto but he noticed a very complex seal array on the hilt that he didn't think he could ever hope to decipher. He also noted the tenth weapon was a giant shuriken that he wasn't sure he could lift and throw with any amount of skill. All in all, they were extremely high quality and durable-looking. He also noted, with amusement, Jiraiya crouching over one of the weapon with a glazed look to his eyes and drool almost coming out of his mouth.

"Now that I'm used to the radiation, I can tell they have a lot of the fox's chakra. It's also very potent, like it hadn't degraded at all since the battle. Thanks to the stasis effect while in storage, I guess." Naruto observed. The Hokage nodded with a smile.

"It's obvious why I brought them out here. I'm hoping you can absorb the chakra."

_**I'll interject here that I am not happy seeing those weapons. They hurt like hell when that wood asshole stuck them into me. We fought with those damn things in me for days. **_Kurama grumbled.

_I can understand that. We'll make it quick then. I just hope I won't scream like a pussy this time when I absorb the chakra. It feels really potent. _

_**No promise I won't tease you about that afterward. **_Kurama said with a snicker.

Ignoring the jab, Naruto brought his right arm up out in front of him and channeled some of Kurama's chakra into it. The shroud now covering it, he concentrated for a second before he could see bits of dark charka appearing in the air from the direction of the weapons as they whirled around to form a dark and dense chakra ball. Sarutobi and Jiraiya, now done gushing over the weapons, observed the procedure closely.

"So you did figure out how to start forming the **Rasengan **like sensei said, gaki." Jiriaya said with a thoughtful expression.

"Yeah. Fox-sensei told me when she saw you using it, she was reminded of how her **Bijuudama **was formed. They were similar in principle. From there, we figured out the three steps you mentioned. Rotation, power, and then compression, right?"

Jiraiya nodded, genuinely impressed.

"I'm still stuck on the first step, though. We haven't figured out how to tell if I did each step right. Too bad mom didn't have time to start learning this jutsu from dad before they died. Otherwise, fox-sensei would've told me the tips from when she was sealed in mom." Naruto explained as he grunted with effort to contain the still-growing ball of dark charka. It was now the size of a normal-sized kickball.

"Since you've learned that much, I'll make it easy for you when I teach you how to do each step correctly this summer." Jiraiya explained as he watched the dark chakra ball eventually stop growing. It was now the size of a beach ball.

Naruto nodded in understanding, looking forward to that time. He grunted in exertion as he had to support his right hand with his left hand as he expanded the chakra shroud to wrap around the ball.

"Naruto-kun, are you sure that much won't kill you?" the Hokage asked in a worried tone as he realized the size and potency of the chakra ball hovering above Naruto's hand.

"The fox said I won't die no matter how much pain I go through as my body adapts more to accept more of the yang-infused chakra. I'm okay with that since I want to be the strongest shinobi around and protect my precious people. If a little bit of pain is all I need to move closer to that goal, I'll gladly take it." Naruto answered in a determined tone as the chakra shroud broke the ball into pieces to be absorbed back into his body. The boy turned to Jiraiya.

"I'll probably be out like a light for the rest of the day after the pain passes so just drop me off at my apartment whenever you can."

Jiraiya nodded grimly as he noticed the boy's body start to twitch with twinges of pain all over. Before long, the hardened Toad Sage had to grit his teeth as he watched his godson fall to the floor trembling and straining to keep from yelling out in pain, his heart going out to this young boy who was prepared to do what it took to get stronger.

It was a long and torturous thirty minutes for the older men in the office until they sighed in relief upon seeing the boy's body become still as Naruto slipped into unconsciousness. He did not once scream in pain; a testament to this boy's incredible willpower.

"Sensei, you should know I'm going to take him to the site of the Kyuubi's sealing when we leave tomorrow. Also, if he's up to it, we'll be stopping by the Valley of the End on the way back from training." Jiraiya advised as he scooped up the unconscious form of Naruto into his arms. The Hokage nodded in understanding.

"As long as Naruto-kun feels he is ready to visit the place where his parents died in their final stand against the Kyuubi."

"We'll be in my usual hotel suite if you need us before we leave."

"Not going to take Naruto-kun to his apartment?"

"After all the crap and pain he went through, I figured he deserves a good night's sleep in a comfortable bed instead of that lumpy pile he calls his mattress before we get started on his training for the summer." the Toad Sage explained with a smile.

**On the road out of Konoha present time**

After spending the night sleeping peacefully in the most comfortable bed he laid on in his short life, Naruto woke up to the news that Jiraiya would be taking him to the site of his parents' death. That darkened his mood some to say the least, as evidenced by his quiet demeanor while he walked a step behind Jiraiya and Anko on the dirt road. The two escorts looked at each other awkwardly, wondering what to say to the depressed boy. After a while, it was Anko who slowed down enough to walk next to the boy and broke the uncomfortable silence.

"Gaki, while I hate to bring this up, I'm wondering why we're going to where your parents died if it bothers you this much." she said with concern clear in her voice. Naruto looked up at Anko to smile weakly. Anko frowned as she decided she didn't like this depressed side of the blonde and vowed to keep him upbeat as much as she could in the future.

"Sorry if I'm worrying you. I'll be ok. However, before I tell you more about myself, I'm curious as to why you're here with us. You never said anything about coming with us yesterday and now you're suddenly walking among us this morning." Naruto inquired of Anko, who shifted awkwardly about being put on the spot about her reasons.

"To be honest, I wasn't planning on coming along at all. For one thing, I didn't even know you were leaving until last night. Yugao-nee mentioned your annual summer training and that usually a volunteer or two comes along to help train you. That answers a lot of my questions on why you're strong for your age if you've been trained by the likes of Gai and Kakashi in the past, along with Jiraiya-sama here." the purple-haired teen explained as she rubbed her neck nervously. Naruto blushed at the praise before inclining his head for further explanation.

"I was thinking after talking with Yugao-nee yesterday that I would like to know more about you if we're going to be friends from now on. So I just went up to the old man last night and requested time off for my trip with you two. I know you have a few secrets about yourself that was forbidden by laws because I was a chunin up until yesterday and I thought it's best for if you tell me any of them yourself rather than learn it secondhand from people who might not like you."

Naruto looked up at Anko with interest as soon as she mentioned his secrets. Anko smiled warmly at him as she continued.

"Don't think I haven't noticed some of the glares on you from those idiot villagers at that dango shop last year. It felt really weird having the glares split between us two. You're a big mystery and I thought I would like to fill in some blanks about you over the summer and learn more about what makes you tick." Anko explained as she put both arms up behind her head as she walked, pushing her large breasts outward as they strained against her tight flesh-colored t-shirt. Naruto had to look straight ahead with his eyes threatening to betray his good intentions as they kept stealing glances at her incredible curves. Jiraiya didn't have the same intention as he displayed a perverted smirk with a small nosebleed. He also brought out a notebook as he seemed to have an idea and started scribbling notes in it before stopping for a moment as a question came to his mind.

"I'm surprised Ibiki let you go for three months if you were just getting started in his department." Jiraiya inquired. He knew Ibiki was usually hardheaded about giving out long breaks like that, especially if it was last-minute. Naruto and Jiraiya then shivered as they saw a sweet smile form on Anko's face, but they knew there were evil intentions behind it.

"Let's just say I have some knowledge on him and leave it at that."

**Back in Konoha**

A shiver went down Morino Ibiki's spine as he was laying his head on the top of his desk in his office. He ignored it as he wondered how the hell Anko figured out his darkest secret after just a few weeks of working in his department.

_And she was merciless in blackmailing me into giving her that much time off! I'd be so proud of her if this wasn't being done to me!_

Hoping to soothe his nerves, the big, scary-looking, and hardened man reached into his triple-locked desk drawer to pull out his greatest guilty pleasure; a volume of the world's greatest, at least in his opinion, romance manga called Love Hina.

**Back with the gang**

The three walked in silence as Naruto contemplated Anko's reasons for going with them.

"Well, I guess that's a good reason for me to tell you more about myself. What do you know about the Kyuubi no Yoko?" Naruto quizzed of his newest friend.

"Enough to know the Yondaime Hokage didn't kill it like the history books said." Anko replied quickly in a bored tone, making Naruto and Jiraiya jerk their heads toward her in surprise. Anko looked at them annoyed.

"I'm smarter than I look. I know a mere human, even one as powerful as the Yondaime, couldn't kill a force of nature like the Kyuubi. I was seven when the attack happened and its power was so awesome that not even the most powerful jutsu I could think of would put a dent in that demon fox."

_**I like this female. She at least respects my status as the strongest creature in the world. **_Kurama said proudly.

_You only like whoever praises you. I wonder what she'd think when I tell her a bit more about your cute moments? Like how you like to pounce and play around in the tall grass I made for you or that you sleep with your tails wrapped around you in a cute and protective way? _

_**That never leaves your mouth if you know what's good for you, boy. **_Kurama growled. Naruto smirked inwardly, satisfied with his teasing of the fox.

_**Do I sleep like that? **_the fox asked awkwardly after a moment.

_If I didn't know you as a sadistic sensei from hell, I'd think you were adorable. _

Naruto had to hold in his chuckle as he heard the fox snort.

"You're a lot smarter than ninety-eight percent of the village. So what do you think happened to the Kyuubi instead?" Naruto quizzed further, not noticing Anko's slight blush as he praised her intelligence. Jiraiya did and he scribbled some more in his notebook, smirking.

"It was sealed into something. At least that's what my...former sensei said. Though he didn't say what or who." Anko's face flashed with anger as soon as she mentioned her former sensei. Naruto and Jiraiya knew who she was talking about but left it aside for now.

"All of that's true. Though there's no what. Just who. Guess when I was born and how old I am right now." Naruto just smiled as Anko whirled her head toward him in surprise. Her face then changed expressions to one of understanding. After staring at Naruto's neutral expression for a long moment, she looked up at Jiraiya, who grimly nodded his head for confirmation. She then looked straight ahead and walked in silence. Naruto and Jiraiya looked at each other and shrugged. They walked in absolute silence for the next fifteen minutes.

Finally, Anko took several quick steps ahead of the two men and turned around so she stood in front of Naruto, stopping him in his track suddenly. He looked up quizzically at Anko's blank expression.

"Thank you." was all Anko said before she turned around and continued her walk. Jiraiya looked down at Naruto confused only to see a smile slowly spreading across the blonde's face.

"What was she thanking you for, gaki?" the Toad Sage inquired as the two males picked up their pace after their female companion.

"Not sure. Could be anything from supposedly keeping the village safe by 'containing the monster' to trusting her with this information."

"Why the smile then?"

"It's not often I'm thanked for anything I do. I'll take it."

After some time walking, they came up to the treeline into the forest where the sealing site was located. From that point on, they needed to travel via the tree branches. They decided to sit down for a quick snack break before continuing.

"Oi, gaki." Anko called out as she bit into an apple in her hand.

Naruto turned his head in her direction as he chewed on his own fruit.

"I forgot for a minute, but you haven't answered why we're going to where your parents died. You just said it was where they passed away but there's another reason, isn't there?"

Naruto and Jiraiya exchanged looks. The Toad Sage shrugged before speaking up.

"I'll field that question. Gaki here wouldn't be able to explain how to boil water, let alone this."

Naruto shot his godfather a dirty look before grumbling as he bit into his apple. Anko smirked at her companions' antics.

"Before we start, Anko-san, this is top secret. Aside from Sarutobi-sensei, not many jounins and ANBU know about this. The fact that the Hokage allowed you to come along means he believes you're trustworthy enough to learn anything on the trip. Anyway, we're training gaki here on how to effectively use the Kyuubi's power. We've been doing this every summer since he's started academy."

"Ah, so that's why you have to go far out of the village for this. Just in case something went wrong, right?" Anko concluded with a raised eyebrow.

"Correct. However, this year we just made a discovery that the Kyuubi's chakra left over from before she was sealed into Naruto still existed, thanks in large part to you. It has a certain component that would improve Naruto's control of the chakra the more he absorbed it. So we're going to where the Kyuubi was sealed so Naruto can find and absorb any residual chakra left by her that night."

"W-wait! You're saying the fox is a she!?" Anko exclaimed in shock.

"Yeah, I found it hard to believe at first too. Her deep voice certainly threw me off for a while." Naruto interjected with a foxy grin.

_**One would sound loud and deep enough at my size. **_Kurama defended lamely.

"So you're in touch with her?" Anko quizzed.

"Yeah. She teaches me a lot so we're sort of student and sensei. Thanks to her incredibly sadistic teaching methods, I became like this."

_**You'd better appreciate that, fool. Without my allegedly 'sadistic' methods you wouldn't be able to do even a fraction of what you can do right now. You'd be struggling with that pathetic **_**Buushin no Jutsu****_ and have learned nothing else._**

_I know that, but I still reserve the right to complain a little. For example, I could do without the ravine climbing. I still have phantom pain with my old broken bones from that._

_**You're such a little pussy. **_Kurama retorted with a laugh.

_And that's precisely why I have trouble thinking you're female! You talk more like a male. _Naruto shot back with a twitching eyebrow.

"So the most powerful creature in the world is female. If I wouldn't feel stupid for screaming 'Girls rule!' at the top of my lungs, I probably would've done it." Anko said with a hint of pride in her voice.

_**I'm liking her more.**_

_Of course you would._

Anko's cheerful expression suddenly changed to one of puzzlement as she dwelled on something Jiraiya said.

"Jiraiya-sama, what did you mean by thanks to me?"

Jiraiya pointed at Naruto.

"The reason gaki here saved your cute little ass just in time two weeks ago was because of the Kyuubi's old chakra that hebi-teme put in you with that curse mark."

Anko's eyes widened in shock as she instinctively brought her hand up to where her mark was. She looked over at Naruto, who had a serious expression.

"It's true. When something happened that made your curse mark act up, I felt a familiar presence in the air. At that point, the fox urged me to go to where you were because she sensed her old chakra there. It was what we needed to improve my control of her chakra so we came to see if we could get it. It was by coincidence that I came upon you about to be hurt so I jumped in. After that, I figured out that you had the chakra inside you and it was hurting you badly so I made the decision to remove it from your body. With the exception of my body, no regular human can stand up to prolonged exposure to the fox's chakra."

Anko stared at Naruto with wide eyes for a long moment.

"So it wasn't by chance. You intentionally came to me because I happened to have that chakra in me."

"I was miles away when I felt the chakra. If it was anything else inside you..." Naruto trailed off to let that hang in the air.

Anko shuddered slightly as she came to terms with how truly lucky she was that bastard snake decided to try putting the Kyuubi's chakra in her curse mark instead of anything else. The one time she let her curse mark flare up since the first few months after she was bought back to Konoha, it saved her honor.

"How did you get it out of me?"

Naruto and Jiraiya looked at each other before shrugging.

"I bit you." Naruto simply said.

"What? That's it?" Anko retorted with skepticism.

Naruto decided it was better to just show rather than explain. He brought out a small bit of the fox's chakra. It was enough to make Anko look at him warily as she felt the familiar presence of the demon fox growing in the air. After a moment, Naruto bared his teeth to show elongated fangs along with his other more feral features. Anko had to fight down a blush as she saw how much more ruggedly handsome he became with the blackened lips, thicker whisker marks, wilder hair, slitted but gentle red eyes, and claws.

"Demonic chakra is attracted to a strong demonic presence. So all I had to do was to bite down on the curse mark and absorb the chakra. After that, whatever was left of the curse mark disappeared." Naruto explained in a slightly deep voice before he let the fox's chakra disappear and returned to normal. Anko finally nodded in understanding after a long moment of staring at the blonde jinchuuriki.

Jiraiya had to keep his smirk from showing.

_Cover up the whole truth with a bit of it, huh? You still explained some of the procedure while hiding the fact that it was because the curse mark was corrupted and broken that you were able to absorb that chakra instead of the other way. _

Anko suddenly smirked sensually.

"So that's why I was topless that night. I guess you needed to take my clothes off..._piece...by...piece_." Anko teased with half-lidded eyes while slowly breathing out the last few words seductively. Naruto's face lit up bright red while poor Jiraiya rocketed backward from a massive nosebleed.

"W-w-wait! You weren't topless! You still had that purple-laced bra on!"

"So you did see!" Anko exclaimed as she caught Naruto in her trap. Jiraiya rocketed backward again from another nosebleed just when he was getting up off the ground.

"Are you sure you and Yugao-san aren't really sisters by blood?" Naruto murmured with an annoyed tone at being tricked so easily again. Anko giggled cutely.

"Sometimes I wonder that myself. Anyway, I suppose I'll let you off for seeing me like that. Maybe make it part of your reward for freeing me from that mark." she said thoughtfully as she fought down a blush for being seen in her sexiest bra by her savior.

"No." the blonde immediately rebutted.

"Excuse me?"

"I don't want that as a reward. It's not that you weren't attractive. I mean, what I saw was amazing but if you felt bothered about what I did, you're welcome to put me in my place." Naruto declared with a determined expression, though one could see a bead of sweat going down the side of his face. Anko had to keep an appreciative smile from showing at his unintentional compliment of her beauty.

"Hm...you're surprisingly honorable for a ten-year-old. Alright, gaki, I suppose I'll just nick you this time for your good attitude. You also get a five-second head start." Anko said with a sickeningly sweet smile as she flicked her right wrist before catching a hidden kunai flying out of her trench coat's sleeve. Naruto just smiled nervously for a second before he immediately got to his feet and jumped into the trees. Anko simply counted down from five before rushing into the forest after her prey. A few seconds later, there were sounds of yelling and metals clashing. Jiraiya got up again, wobbling from losing so much blood. He wasn't dazed enough to be unable to scribble more in his notebook with a lecherous grin plastered across his face.

**An hour later at the sealing site**

"This is it. We're close." Jiraiya announced as he jumped down to the ground from the trees. Anko and Naruto immediately followed suit. The Toad Sage could see Naruto's nervous expression as he prepared himself to face whatever awaited him at the sealing site.

"Gaki, we don't have to do this if you're not ready. There's no pressure." Jiraiya tried to offer his godson a way out. Anko looked over at the blonde nervously, wondering what he would do. For a long moment, Naruto stared at the ground in front of him before perking his head up, determination clear on his face.

"No...let's keep going. If I don't do this now, I'm not sure if I'd come back later." Jiraiya and Anko nodded before they all started their brief walk.

"I'll put you at ease before we get there, gaki. After what...happened, we cleaned up the scene. You're not going to see anything unnecessary. We properly buried the bodies and cleared the scene of any blood. Not just out of respect but we also could not risk any other shinobi finding this site and take DNA samples for their own purpose." Jiraiya said as he made his way through the thick forest, Anko and Naruto close on his heels. He looked over at his godson to see the boy nod in understanding and relief.

After a few minutes of walking, the trio came out of the thick forest into a large clearing. Anko and Naruto were surprised to see what looked like a giant light blue barrier dome dwarfing over the trio covering most of the clearing in front of them. Jiraiya walked up to the edge of the barrier and put a hand up to touch it.

"I put this barrier up after we cleared out the scene. We could feel the area inside was practically saturated with the presence of the fox and Sarutobi-sensei ordered me to put up an impenetrable security barrier. It was to protect this area and put it in stasis so we could study the effects of the chakra if we were able to. Gaki, the chakra you're about to absorb is going to be nearly as potent as it was on that night. Anko-san, this might explain why some of the fox's chakra ended up in you because the few science expeditions we sent here included Orochimaru each time. However, we weren't aware that he somehow managed to collect the chakra if he did anything at the time." Jiraiya explained as he rubbed his hand across the surface of the barrier slowly.

Naruto noticed Anko looking over at him worriedly when Orochimaru was mentioned. He made a mental note to settle her worries about that soon.

"Here we go, kiddies." Jiraiya announced as he blurred through hand signs before slamming a palm on the barrier. In the next instant, the shimmering blue wall disappeared, revealing a large barren clearing that had clear signs of the Kyuubi having been there. After a long moment of standing at the edge of the barrier, Naruto pushed himself to step inside the barrier's boundary with Jiraiya next to him. Anko felt it wasn't her place yet so she decided to remain silent and walked a few step behind the two males.

Naruto saw giant gouges and depressions all over the ground as if a giant creature had been here. There were a couple of giant handprints and they were twice the size of Kurama's, proving the theory that his father had split the demon fox in two during the sealing. He also noticed a small pile of rubble at the edge of the clearing. Jiraiya, seeing the blonde's interest in the rubble, decided to clarify.

"That used to be a private cottage for whenever your parents wanted to get away from the hustle and bustle of Konoha for a while. From what Sarutobi-sensei told me, Minato teleported the fox over here when she was about to damage the village with one of her **Bijuudamas. **He was able to do that because of a **Hiraishin **kunai he kept here. The sealing happened immediately afterward."

Naruto nodded, thankful for the explanation. He wanted to learn more about what exactly happened that night. Something small next to a large grouping of ground damages caught his eyes and he walked slowly over to it. When he got there, his eyes widened upon recognizing the object. Jiraiya and Anko both stiffened in shock at seeing the object Naruto was walking to.

"This was my ceremonial cradle, wasn't it?" the boy murmured quietly as he stood over a small blue stone cradle barely big enough to hold a newborn. He didn't need to see Jiraiya nod for confirmation. His eyes quickly scanned the ground around the cradle for any sign that his parents might have been nearby in their deaths. Even for any trace of blood. He felt relieved when he saw two pairs of distinctive footprints near the cradle and his heart sank a little when he saw they were down on their knees.

"At least they were near me when they died. I wonder what they had to say." Naruto quietly said to no one in particular as Jiraiya and Anko silently put a comforting hand each on his shoulders.

_**I...remember their final moments just before I was sealed into you. They had a lot to say to you. **_Kurama, silent for the past hour, finally spoke up with clear hesitation in her voice as she dreaded the response from Naruto that came.

_Can you show it to me? I need to see it. _Naruto inquired with determination. He could tell Kurama did not want to share her memory of that event for his sake but he needed to see this.

_**Naruto, you should know that I was released from that man's control in the last few minutes and I was desperately trying to keep my brief freedom. I was fully aware and in control of my actions at that point. I was also very angry when your parents managed to ensnare me and were preparing to seal me into you. I tried to kill you to prevent that and they got in the way of my strike. Even though they were dying and I merely quickened their deaths, it's not a scene a child should see of his parents. **_Kurama admitted nervously as she felt her container stiffen when she mentioned his parents taking her attack meant for him. Naruto took a deep breath to steady himself before continuing.

_I'll see you in a second. _Naruto said as he heard Kurama sigh dejectedly. He turned to his companions.

"Thanks for your support. However, can you give me a few minutes to mediate? The fox said she has memories of that night and I'm going to ask her to show me. I want to hear what my parents had to say." Naruto requested solemnly of his companions. Jiraiya flinched as Anko looked on worriedly.

"Gaki...are you sure? I've seen the results. They did not die peacefully at all."

"I know. The fox said as much, but I'm prepared. I just want to be left alone for a few minutes." Naruto said as he turned around, not leaving any room for debate as he sat down on the ground in his lotus pose a few meters away. Jiraiya and Anko watched with worry.

**In the mindscape**

Naruto appeared standing in the middle of the plain portion of his mindscape in front of Kurama. He grimly looked up at the giant fox's sad expression. No words were needed as Kurama brought up a holographic projection of her memories out of thin air.

"**Naruto, I'm sorry for what I'm about to show you." **Kurama simply said, her voice filled with sorrow.

**A few minutes later outside in the clearing**

Jiraiya and Anko stood a few meters away from the mediating Naruto as they watched silently, nervously awaiting any sign of activity from the boy. Anko decided to bring up something that was nagging at her inside.

"His father's the Yondaime Hokage. Am I right?" Anko asked for confirmation. She was surprised to see Jiraiya nod with no hint of shock from him at that information being found out.

"You look like you were expecting me to find that out, even though I'm sure it was a big secret if the rest of the village had no idea."

"I'd be disappointed in your intelligence if you didn't figure that out by yourself with all the obvious clues around here. The fact Sarutobi-sensei let you come along on this trip is a sign that he trusts you to keep whatever information you find to yourself so I see no reason to hide anything from you." Jiraiya retorted.

"Well, aside from the gaki being basically a mini-Yondiame, I'm pretty good with tracking and doing investigations. I could easily tell from looking around this area that it was just the Fourth, since he obviously had to be here to do the sealing, and a woman, most likely the mother, with baby gaki until the others arrived after the fact. Since you guys kept mentioning that his parents died here and I don't see any sign of another couple, it's impossible to dismiss the Fourth as the gaki's father." Anko recounted her observations from walking around the clearing. Jiraiya smiled.

"I would be a bit more impressed if you figured out the mother yourself."

"Uzumaki Kushina." Anko quickly replied with a victorious smile. Jiraiya looked over at the teenage girl with a raised eyebrow, hoping for further explanation.

"I ran into her a few times around the village when I was a child before the Kyuubi attack. She was a beautiful and kind woman. Someone like her was impossible to forget, especially with that long red hair. I saw her with the Fourth one time and I remember thinking it was so obvious they had the hots for each other. Being around six at that time, I was hoping I didn't catch their cooties." Anko chuckled as she relieved the memory of Kushina's bright and mischievous smile, very similar to Naruto's. Jiraiya nodded with a gentle smile, lost in his own memories of his beloved student and the wife.

"Tell that to the gaki when you can. He'll want to hear more about his parents from anyone that met them."

Anko nodded as she watched Naruto mediate in silence for a moment. Jiraiya looked over at Anko and he could tell from her expressions that she was starting to care for the blonde. He wondered if any romance would develop in the future, especially with the Hyuuga heiress around him. In any case, he thought he would at least encourage this purple-haired teen to deepen her bond with his godson.

"Anko-san, you should talk to him about your own past soon. It's clear you're afraid of him finding it out eventually." Jiraiya bluntly said as Anko jerked her head to him with wide eyes before she sighed.

"It's that obvious, huh? I know I should let him know, especially when he shared his secrets with me, but I'm afraid of what he'd think."

"It would be pretty hypocritical of the gaki if he thought badly of you for that."

"What do you mean by that?"

"He's had to live with the village's hatred directed at him since the day he was born. Even now, most of the villagers still hate him for what he represented, even though he never made the choice to carry that stigma. Sound familiar?"

Anko sighed at being reminded of her own situation.

"That's what I thought. I think he knows already and is just waiting for you to feel comfortable enough to share your story with him. I guarantee you it'll make you feel better to share it with someone who can understand where you're coming from. At least just think about it." the Toad Sage urged.

Anko could only reply with a silent nod of understanding before they returned their gazes to Naruto's still form. After a few long moments, they perked up upon hearing Naruto let out a loud exhale. Any hope of seeing Naruto at least come out of his mindscape ok was shattered when they saw a look of deep pain and suffering creep up on his face. The boy was straining to not cry as he looked up to the clear sky and took heavy, long, and shuddering breaths. He took a hand to clench on tightly to his orange jacket's fabric right over his heart, as if to try to contain the pain flowing from there.

"Naruto..." Anko called out softly, dropping her usual nickname for him for the moment. She tried to step closer to the suffering blonde before she was stopped in her track by the boy raising his other hand in a stopping gesture. Naruto let out one last loud exhale before shakily getting up to his feet.

"Anko-san, Jiraiya-sensei...p-please step back. I'm going to absorb the c-chakra now. My...emotions are kinda wild so I'm not sure what's going to happen when I bring out the shroud for this." Naruto shakily said as he looked over at his two companions with dull blue eyes, pain evident in them. The boy then slowly turned and walked away toward the center of where Kurama had been restrained for her sealing. Shocked at the sudden action, Anko stood still for a moment before she felt her body move forward toward the suffering boy.

"Naruto...you don't have to do this! Just take it easy for now!" Anko's voice rose in alarm as she felt the desperate need to try to comfort him. That was before she felt the powerful Toad Sage's hand gripping her shoulder, keeping her in place easily. She jerked her head back toward Jiraiya with a deadly glare and snarled at him angrily, not caring she was trying to threaten one of the most powerful shinobi in the nations. Her actions didn't faze him one bit as he pulled the struggling girl backward.

"LET ME GO, ASSHOLE! Can't you see he's hurting!?" Anko screamed at the tall white-haired man as she tried to take several swipes at him, all of which he easily dodged.

"I know and there's nothing I want more than making sure he's ok but he's unstable right now. I can feel him barely holding the fox's chakra in for our safety. The best thing we can do for now is to just allow him to let it out for the next few minutes, then you can move in." Jiraiya warned as he pulled her back to the edge of the clearing, at least a hundred meters away from the lone blonde.

"How much damage could he cause with that chakra?!" Anko shouted disbelievingly.

As if to answer her question, Jiraiya and Anko were blown back a few feet when Naruto threw his head back to the sky to let out a loud and pain-filled roar as red chakra exploded out of him violently in all direction. As the chakra expanded, a huge crater formed underneath and it got deeper with Naruto at the center the bigger it got. Jiraiya and Anko had to put their arms up to protect against flying debris and strong winds before the crater and chakra finally stopped expanding at around fifty meters from the boy. The chakra then compressed itself quickly around the boy to form into his three-tailed chakra shroud. Naruto's feral features seemed subdued as he stared blankly at nothing in particular in front of him while he brought his right arm straight up above his head, the hand outstretched. Jiraiya and Anko could feel the atmosphere shift and vibrate around their skin as they watched in amazement a large and dark chakra ball slowly forming in mid-air directly above Naruto. Anko looked over at Jiraiya and was unnerved to see him looking so pale.

"What's wrong!? Hasn't he done this before?"

"Yeah, but the last time I saw him do this that ball was the size of a beach ball. He absorbed that into himself and he suffered thirty minutes of pain that I can only imagine. Look at the size of that thing and it's still growing!"

Anko shifted her attention back to Naruto and gaped as she saw the ball was at least four times the size of what Jiraiya saw the night before and it was still slowly expanding.

"We have to stop him! Won't that kill him?!" Anko pleaded as she wanted to go out to the boy, still struggling with Jiraiya's vice-like grip on her shoulder.

"It's too late! There's no telling what'll happen if he just let it destabilize itself instead of absorbing it. The Kyuubi said it won't kill him no matter how much it hurts but..." Jiraiya trailed off, worry clear on his face.

After a long excruciating moment of silently watching Naruto continue to form the ball, it seemed to have finally stopped expanding and the entire clearing fell deathly silent. Anko's heart clenched tightly as she saw tears flowing freely down Naruto's cheeks, a sharp contrast to the boy's aggressively feral features.

The boy murmured quietly but his voice was louder and deeper so Anko and Jiraiya heard it clearly across the quiet clearing. It turned their insides ice-cold.

"**I wonder if this'll hurt as much as the pain in my heart."**

The two watched in abject horror as Naruto used his chakra shroud to wrap around the ball and break it into pieces. He then started absorbing them into his own body. With that, the shroud disappeared and the terrible presence lifted, leaving the clearing quiet and still once again, the only difference from before being the new large crater that formed. Jiraiya's hand lifted off Anko's shoulder at that point and that was all the prompting she needed.

Anko dashed at full speed dowm the crater toward Naruto, reaching him in a few seconds as his hands started to tremble. She half-tackled him into a tight hug as she felt his body start to rack with jolts of pain. She felt him slowly wrap his arms around her underneath her arms and grasped painfully at her shoulder blades but she didn't mind. They sunk to their knees as Naruto's body gave out and she pulled his head into the nape of her neck so she could whisper next to his ear.

"It's ok, Naruto. I'm here. Just let it all out. No need to hold it in." Anko could feel Naruto nod his head slightly as he started to sniffle and sob while trying to hold in groans of pain but failing. After a few minutes of this, Anko felt Jiraiya step up close to the two of them. She looked up at him as he let out a weary sigh.

"Damn, I hate seeing Naruto like that. He should be happy and cheerful, not this. I don't know how long this will go on so I'm just going to go ahead and set up camp for us for the night. I'll get you when I make something to eat." Jiraiya said, his sad eyes lingering on the crying boy. Anko only nodded silently as she tightened her hold around Naruto's trembling form.

**Some time later**

Naruto popped his eyes open to see the night sky dotted with stars everywhere above him. After quickly gaining his bearing, he let out a sigh. Anko then came into his view upside-down, a relieved expression on her face upon seeing him finally awake. A nearby campfire cast a warm glow over her.

"Anko-san..." Naruto croaked a little as his throat was dry. "...what are you doing up there? And why are you upside-down?" Anko giggled.

"You were sleeping on my lap, silly. Where else would I be?'

Naruto widened his eyes as he reflexively tried to sit up only to be kept in place by a hand to his forehead. He noticed he was laying on the ground with Anko sitting behind his head, cradling it in her lap.

"Don't move, gaki. You're staying right here until I say otherwise. Plus, I like running my hands through your hair." Anko teased as she slowly raked her fingers through his beautiful and soft sun-kissed blonde hair. Naruto blushed but let out a sigh as he relaxed under her gesture. He certainly appreciated the soft and warm feeling on the back of his head and neck.

"How long have I been out?" he simply asked.

"Seven hours. You spent the first two hours crying like a pussy, then you slept the rest." Anko teased as Naruto groaned.

"The fox gives me hell about that. I don't need that from you, too." he retorted with a smirk. Anko's expression changed to one of wariness.

"Are you ok with her? The fox, I mean." she saw Naruto's inquisitive expression so she continued. "Jiraiya-sama told me what might have happened that night, about how your...parents protected you from a fatal strike from the Kyuubi." She almost panicked as she watched the blonde's beautiful blue eyes dull slightly in remembrance before she calmed down when he smiled slightly.

"Yeah. They did take a fatal strike meant for me. I'd admit seeing them get skewered by a giant claw was gut-wrenching, but I'm glad I did when I got to hear their final words afterward. Because of that, I'm not going to hold it against the fox. It's probably best I stay out of the mindscape for a little while though. We'll just start over in a few days and go from there."

Anko smiled, nodding her head.

"They said they loved you, didn't they?" she softly said as she made another pass through the boy's hair with her fingers. Naruto's eyes widened.

"They said a lot more than that, but yeah, that's the gist of it." he said with a bright smile. "How did you know?"

"I'm an orphan too. My parents died in the Third Great War when I was an infant." Anko replied in fond remembrance. Naruto's eyes briefly changed to sadness for a moment.

"I'm sorry."

"Why are you apologizing, gaki?"

"That's the greatest wish of many orphans, I suppose. Other people tell me that my parents did love me and they would have given me a happy childhood if they hadn't died. But like other orphans, I always wanted to hear that they did actually love me straight from their mouths. I kinda feel bad I got my answer while you didn't."

"Don't worry about it. I'm happy for you, gaki. Besides, I didn't really have much time to dwell on that question when I was taken in as an apprentice to... Orochimaru when I was five." Anko winced at mentioning her former sensei's name only to see Naruto's expression remain neutral, waiting for her to continue. She felt some relief at that and gained some more courage.

"He was a tough sensei and never gave me any time to relax and think in my training with him. However, I thought he was a great man and even began to see him as a new father figure in my life. I even thought I would do anything for him." Anko let out a sad sigh before continuing in a slightly angry tone, her fingers instinctively tightening around Naruto's hair. "That's why it hurt so much when he betrayed the village and me. I left the village with that snake traitor when I was nine thinking it was a training trip. I went to sleep in a camp on the side of the road one night and I woke up three years later strapped naked to a lab table with Yugao-nee freeing me from the restraints. I have absolutely no memory of the three years I was gone and no way to recover the time lost. So imagine my shock when Yugao-nee told me that bastard betrayed the village the night he took me with him and that I was used as an experiment for the curse mark in the end and left for dead in that lab." she growled out the last few sentences as Naruto reached up to take Anko's hand from his hair to let her grip his hand tightly for comfort. She took several calming breaths before continuing.

"So I came back to the village and was deemed a traitor just because of my ex-sensei. It took a lot of effort for the old man to get me back into the shinobi force and I'm forever grateful to him for that. Even then, I went through hell with my old genin team making every effort to make me look bad and undermine me at every turn. I was just lucky I made chunin with that. Even now as a jounin, I still deal with a lot of hatred from the idiot villagers like you do. I'm just happy I had Yugao-nee and Kurenai-chan around to help me through the tough times up until now."

Naruto nodded in understanding as he smiled up at Anko from her lap.

"You can add me to that list if you'd like. I'm sorry you had to deal with that. I know you didn't deserve any of that because you're a good person."

Anko was more happy than she expected to be upon hearing that this particular person accepted her with all the flaws she had. Though she was curious about one thing.

"How would you know I'm a good person? I certainly don't act like one often."

"Your older sister. She broke into my home and tried to slice me into pieces when she thought I did weird stuff to you the night I took the curse mark off. While it was a misunderstanding, she declared she would do what it took to protect you from any more harm and I knew right away she loved you a lot." Naruto chuckled as he watched Anko's face turn bright red from embarrassment.

"She did what?! She didn't tell me that part! That's going too far, even for Yugao-nee!" she murmured angrily as she contemplated retaliation for her dear sister. Naruto shrugged.

"Don't worry. I taught her a lesson. Besides, it was nice seeing her doing so much for you because she thinks of you as a great person."

Anko let her embarrassment fade away as she stared down at Naruto, her hand back to raking through his hair absent-mindedly. She stared down into his blue eyes long enough to make him shift uncomfortably under the gaze. Finally, she broke the silence.

"You're a strange one, gaki. You're ten yet you act older and more mature than I am sometimes."

Naruto shrugged and they exchanged small smiles. At that point, they decided nothing else was needed to be said so they spent some time enjoying the stars above them.

Some distance away in hiding, Jiraiya smiled as he struck some lines through the recent notes he scribbled in his notebook. He decided the scene he just saw belonged to only the two of them. Hey, even he had some standards.

**Later at the secret training ground**

"We're here, kiddies." Jiraiya announced as he put his travel bag on the ground next to the small wooden shack at the edge of a large training ground, with Anko and Naruto following suit a second later.

"So what are we going to teach the gaki this summer?" Anko asked as she stretched out her body from the long travel here.

"He's proficient enough with ninjutsu and taijutsu at this point. As for kenjutsu, there's not much we can do with that until he gets the weapons he needs, so we'll leave that up to training in his mindscape with the fox. I'm going to teach him how to refine the **Rasengan **and then teach him **Summoning** this summer. Afterward, we'll figure out a few more of my personal jutsu for him to learn."

"What about stealth, evasion, assassination, interrogation, and tracking?" Anko inquired as Naruto watched the conversation with an annoyed tick on his forehead. He was being talked about as if he wasn't there! Jiraiya nodded knowingly.

"I guess that's why sensei let you come with us. You'd make the perfect sensei for that."

Anko smirked evilly as she turned toward the blonde suddenly, making Naruto flinch and put up a wary defensive pose.

_**I'm getting a bad feeling about this. **_Kurama spoke up suddenly. Naruto and Kurama already got past the incident recently and their relationship was mostly back to normal. The blonde could only nod mentally as he had the same feeling too.

"Let's get started on dodging thrown weapons. I'm going to give you a ten-second head start starting now."

"W-w-what do you mean, Anko-san!?"

"That's Anko-_sensei_ to you, gaki. And it's been seven seconds!" Anko barked as she took out multiple kunai and shuriken in her hands. Naruto knew better than to argue further and ran at top speed into cover in the trees as Anko laughed evilly before she jumped in after the poor boy. While Jiraiya listened to the shrill screaming of a child in the forest, he briefly wondered if he did the right thing by bringing Anko along on this trip.

**A few days later**

"Oi! Why the hell am I tied up?!" Naruto shouted as he struggled to get out the rope bounding him tightly. Anko crouched down in front of him with a sweet smile.

"In case you're captured, you need to learn how to escape by yourself using nothing but your wits. That's the basic rope-tying technique a lot of shinobi know so we'll start with that. In the meantime, you're not going to be able to cover up your ears as I teach you about the worst torture techniques we know of. With that information, you may be prepared for whatever your captors would try to get information out of you." Anko said with a smirk, remembering getting the same lesson from Ibiki that made her feel green for days afterward. She was surprised to see the blonde just raise an eyebrow at what she was planning on doing to him.

"You don't seem worried, gaki." she observed.

"I'm not. I probably have heard worse." Anko's eyebrow twitched at hearing the boy's nonchalant tone.

"False bravado will get you nowhere!" she challenged as she proceeded to spend the next fifteen minutes telling Naruto of the worst torture methods she knew of. That was why it left her stunned as she stared down at the still tied-up boy looking up at her with a bored expression, not showing any sign of disgust.

"H-how!? I made some of the prisoners in my department give up everything they knew of just from describing one of these methods to them!"

"You forget who I have in me. She's seen everything humans can do in her thousands of years existing and she was only too happy to pass on some of her favorite methods she's seen. Hearing those made me lose sleep for months. She refuses to tell me the top worst method for worry of shattering my mind just from hearing the description."

_**I'd say the methods she was talking about would place in the 30s on my list of the worst I've seen. **_Kurama interjected helpfully.

Anko felt a cold shiver go down her spine as Naruto smirked evilly.

"Let's see how you like number ten on her list."

A few minutes later, Jiraiya heard dry heaving sounds coming from where Anko was going to teach Naruto about torture. Jiraiya wouldn't have paid that any mind if he didn't hear that sound coming from a female. Curious, he walked over to them to find Anko on all fours breathing heavy and trembling violently with Naruto a few feet away starting to get out of the rope bounding him.

"What's wrong, kiddies?"

Naruto shrugged off the rope and got up before smiling innocently.

"Anko-sensei here tried to scare me with torture stories. I returned the favor with some of what the fox told me before."

"I'll never be able to get that out of my head! How could humans do that to each other?! I'm not even sure I hate Orochimaru enough to try that on him!" Anko murmured fearfully as she shivered involuntary.

"Really? It couldn't be that bad, right?" Jiraiya said with a raised eyebrow. Let it be known that was the last time he would ever use that phrase as Naruto proceeded to repeat the same thing he said to Anko a few minutes ago. A few minutes later, Naruto walked away from his two green and heaving companions with a victorious smile.

**A few weeks later**

Letting out a loud yawn as he stepped out of the shack early in the morning, Naruto decided to take a dip in the nearby hot spring. He failed to notice that Anko's sleeping cot was empty.

A few minutes later, he found himself frozen solid at the edge of the hot spring as his eyes locked on to the naked and curvacious form of one Mitarashi Anko stepping out of the spring on the other side with her back to him sighing contentedly as she held a towel to her front, covering up her shapely breasts and her most private spot. She hadn't noticed Naruto yet. From where he was standing, he clearly saw her well-toned and slender legs, her beautiful and plump rear end that had to be crafted by Kami, her perfectly proportioned hips, and her small but well-muscled back. However, what he focused on the most was her gorgeous silky purple hair, now out of her pineapple style, cascading down to her shoulders like a waterfall. It had a radiant sheen to it in the growing morning sunlight. At that moment, he felt a small stirring in his lions.

_**Puberty has come early for our favorite blonde! **_Kurama laughed as she watched this amusing scene.

As if she felt a presence, Anko suddenly jerked her head toward where she felt it and was surprised to see Naruto standing there frozen in shock. After blinking for a moment, she felt her righteous feminine rage growing and was about to visit unspeakable horrors on the boy when he murmured something unexpected.

"Beautiful...hair..." the red-cheeked boy murmured in a daze. Anko was shocked by that statement before she blushed bright red. That was what he noticed the most? Even as he clearly saw her other features, ones she thought were more attractive to other men?

Composing herself, she let out a loud sigh, which snapped the boy out of his daze and he looked up at Anko's face in horror.

"You've got ten seconds to burn this amazing view into your brain before I get dressed and try my best to kill you for the day. If you survive, the memory's your reward." Anko said with a vicious smirk. Naruto gulped as he was about to consider that option before Kurama made the decision for him.

_**Oi, I have eidetic memory and I can show you this memory in much better detail anytime you want. You might as well use the ten seconds to get farther away from this girl. She's serious about hunting you down like an animal. Or a fox in our case. **_

Naruto didn't need any further prodding as he immediately disappeared back into the bushes, leaving the naked woman alone. For some reason, Anko felt a little annoyed.

_That stupid idiot. The least he should have done is spend at least two more seconds taking in my sexy ass. I feel a little insulted. But...he likes my hair. _Anko thought with a giggle as she counted down from ten then slowly got dressed. She might as well make it a little more challenging for herself by taking her time. Despite the stupid orange outfit, that brat can really hide if given enough time.

**Another few weeks later**

Naruto was panting heavily as he hid himself underneath a thick pile of leaves on the ground somewhere in the forest around the training ground.

_Damn those two! They had to forbid my use of the _**Invisibility Cloak **_jutsu. I was starting to have an easy time hiding from Anko-sensei and now they rack up the difficulty! _

_**Not my problem. Besides, it would be boring for me to watch you cruise through your training. I want to hear your screams of pain and see your terrified expressions! **_Kurama cackled evilly.

_You're such a great friend. _Naruto retorted sarcastically.

_**Fine. I'll help you out a little. She's behind you. Boo!**_

Naruto's insides went cold as he felt a slender hand slip around his neck before he was pulled up out of the leaves in a headlock with a kunai pointed at his face. He gulped.

"_Hellooo there, sexy." _Anko whispered from behind into his ear in a breathy and seductive tone, making Naruto blush despite the deadly kunai pointing a few inches from his face.

"You have been caught, and so soon too. You relied too much on that jutsu so we're going to keep this up until you're at an acceptable level." Anko whispered in a disappointed tone.

"I'm going to give you an incentive though." Anko mysteriously said before she twitched her kunai, cutting into the boy's cheek making him cry out more in surprise than pain.

"What the f-" the word died in his throat as he felt Anko's wet tongue lick across the cut, tasting the blood that flowed out. Naruto's body jolted with electricity as he felt the tongue move across his whiskered cheek seductively.

_**I really, really like her. I might actually even love her a tiny bit.**_

_NOT HELPING!_

"Mmm, that's delicious. Which means bad news for you, gaki. I'm going to be much more motivated to catch you and cut you each time I find you so I can taste more of this delicious blood. So you'd better be more motivated than I am if you're going to overcome this." Anko's voice moaned next to the boy's ear before she let him go to disappear into the trees.

"You have ten minutes before I go after your ass again. You'd better improve your time or a small cut will be the least of your worries." Anko's voice called out from high up in the trees.

Naruto's body shuddered at what just happened.

_I have mixed feelings about this. I should be really disturbed by this but for some reason there's this other feeling I can't comprehend. _

_**That's called puberty. Now hurry and hide if you want to survive with most of your chastity still intact.**_

**Some time later on one evening**

_Boooored. _Naruto drawled out in his mind for the tenth time that night. Jiraiya and Anko were sleeping peacefully in their cots.

_**Shut up, you annoying brat! I told you before we're done with the training in your mindscape for the night and any more than that would be counter-productive. It's not my fault you're having a bout of insomnia this evening. **_

_I know. I just can't do anything loud without waking these two up. I'm not risking waking Anko-sensei up after last time. Who knew a sleepy Anko could aim so well when she was shooting for my balls?_

Naruto looked around the shack with his enhanced night vision before his eyes came upon a small pile of books sitting by Jiraiya's cot. The blonde then quietly got out of his cot and snuck over to the books to look through them for anything to read. He frowned in annoyance after a few seconds.

_Figures all that damn pervert would have here is porn. _

_**Um...can you read that volume? **_Kurama said with some embarrassment in her voice. If Naruto saw her right now, he would see her acting a little bashful with a blush that was somehow visible through her red fur.

_While I'm a little weirded out by that sudden request, I have to point out that's a more recent volume. Wouldn't you be better off reading the early volumes if you were interested in this? _

_**I've already read them. That's the next one in the series I want to read. **_Naruto blinked in confusion.

_Wait, how could you have read these books if you were inside me all..this..time..._

Kurama remained silent as she let it sink in for the poor blonde.

_Oh. My. Kami. I was born from a pervert!_

_**A big-time one. **_Kurama admitted as Naruto took the time to process this information slowly, lest he would have screamed in horror otherwise.

_Please tell me dad was the perfect example of a normal man! Don't let both of my parents be perverts!_

_**That was just the public face he put on. He was just as big of a pervert as Kushina was behind closed doors. **_Kurama said as she blushed at the memories of some of the stuff her previous container did with her husband.

_No! No! No! I'm going to kill Ero-sennin in his sleep before he corrupts me too! _Naruto cried out inwardly before he was about to make good on his threat as he slowly took out a kunai.

_**Despite his best efforts, it wasn't the old pervert that 'corrupted' your father. It was your mother.**_

Naruto almost dropped his kunai in despair before he put it back. After a long moment of thought, he reached down to pick up the book Kurama wanted.

_**I figured you would be so disturbed by the revelations you'd swear these books off for good. Not that I'm complaining.**_

Naruto sighed inwardly as he quietly made his way back to his cot and laid down to crack open the orange book.

_Can't beat 'em. Might as well join 'em. I'm going to see what's so great about these books. _

**Early next morning**

Jiraiya yawned as he sat up in his cot and looked around. His eyes bulged out as he found Naruto lying in his cot with the boy's face buried in one of his infamous orange books. He was about to ask what was going on before he was stopped by Naruto snapping the book closed. The older man could see the boy had some red tinge on his cheeks. Despite the wrongness of a ten-year-old reading one of his books, he was curious.

"So how do you like it?" Jiraiya whispered for fear of waking Anko. He still wondered how someone that sleepy could have perfect aim toward any male's crotch. Naruto looked over at his godfather with brief surprise before he shrugged.

"I was reading it for the fox. Apparently she likes your works."

Jiraiya had to take a moment to let it sink in that the most powerful creature in the world enjoyed his works. Then he shook that absurdness off.

"I see. And your opinion?" Jiraiya smirked as he saw the red tinge return to the boy's cheeks.

"The storyline was interesting. The naughty scenes...not so much. They were boring to me."

Naruto figured his godfather would have taken offense to that but he was surprised to see him nod in understanding.

"That seems to be the common complaint most of the younger readers had about my series. Recently, the editor admitted I was using old-fashioned words that didn't appeal to them."

Naruto just shrugged, not having too much sympathy for his godfather's situation.

"How about this? You already have the mentality of a young 18-something and you're smarter than that so maybe you can help me with something?" Jiraiya leaned in with a whisper.

Naruto raised an eyebrow, wondering what his godfather was thinking.

**A couple hours later**

Mitarashi Anko was filled with dread. When she woke up this morning she thought it was going to be a nice off day from training for her She would just take a long stroll in the forest and enjoy the nature then come back to play with Naruto some before eating and going back to sleep.

However, she felt like she stepped into an alternate universe as she watched Naruto and Jiraiya sit across from each other at a patio table with a large unbrella in the middle of the clearing, reading through piles of papers and bickering over which term needed to be replaced or not in Jiraiya's next porn novel. What topped it off for her was that they were wearing old-fashioned bifocal glasses and acting like they were squinting while reading though those papers.

"'Flower petal' isn't something young people like me would care to empathize with and we'd just think you're being a moron for dancing around and avoiding using more direct terms like slit or pussy!" Naruto argued.

"How dare you, gaki! It's much more romantic to a reader's soul to see these terms! It would be too raw and visceral otherwise if I wrote it more directly!" Jiraiya retorted.

"Look, Ero-sennin...you said you want to update your terminology to pull in younger readers. I'm trying to help you out with that!" Naruto got up in Jiraiya's face.

"Whoa...whoa...whoa! Timeout!" a female voice interrupted the two males, who looked in its direction to find a seriously disturbed-looking Anko standing there.

"Ok. Here's the deal. I'm going to think I stepped into a different dimension for the moment and just assume my version of Jiraiya-sama and the gaki are doing their normal stupid things while I'm stuck here in this pocket of alternate reality. In my world, a ten-year-old is certainly not arguing with a porn writer over terms to use in his next porn novel." Anko calmly said with a dangerously twitching eyebrow. The two males looked at each other nervously as the purple-haired teenage girl pointed into the forest surrounding the training field.

"I'm going to take a long walk out there and I'm going to come back in five hours and everything will be back to normal for me. Otherwise I'm going have to slit your throats for the good of mankind." Anko said the last sentence with a dangerous glint in her eyes. The two men began sweating comically as their female companion started to walk off. They flinched when she stopped in her track and turned around with a question.

"What's with the glasses? Both of you can hit a bullseye fifty meters away without even trying."

The two men looked at each other briefly before shrugging.

"For the atmosphere?" they both said at the same time as they adjusted their glasses haughtily. Anko took in an annoyed intake of breath and nodded slowly before walking again.

"Riiight. This is a really fucked up alternate reality." Anko concluded as she disappeared into the trees. The men looked at each other before breaking down laughing.

**End of training trip on the way back to Konoha**

"Oi, boys. I've noticed something." Anko announced in an annoyed tone as she walked a few steps behind her male companions on the dirt road. They stiffened a little.

"Why are we going to the Valley of the End? That's out of the way."

"Umm..." Naruto tried to stall.

"I'm not stupid, gaki. I know that was where the Kyuubi fought with the First Hokage. You're thinking about checking the area for any residual chakra left over, aren't you?" Anko growled. She did not want to see Naruto put himself through the painful absorption process again.

"Anko-sensei, you know why I'm doing this." Naruto tried to explain.

"That you're going to put yourself through the meat grinder again!? You have no idea how helpless I felt seeing you in extreme agony at the sealing site! How relieved I was when you finally fell asleep peacefully! And that was before I spent the whole summer getting to know you and we became good friends! What good is getting stronger to protect your precious ones if you're going to hurt the same people because they had to watch you push yourself past your limits!?" Anko raised her voice at her blonde friend. Naruto glared at her in annoyance.

"I made a promise that I would be the strongest shinobi in the village to protect my loved ones! I would do anything aside from evil things to reach that goal. One of the lessons you gave me over the summer is that a shinobi makes use of any tool available to him. Well, I see the yang-infused chakra as something to help me get stronger with the fox's help! That way, I can add one more option to defeating my enemies! So what if I go through a little bit of pain to obtain it? It's the same as training yourself to exhaustion and then rebuilding the destroyed body for the next day!"

Anko growled in rage upon seeing Naruto's stubbornness out in full force. She knew she wasn't going to make him change his mind about this. She whirled on her feet and made her way down a different path from the one men were taking.

"Fine! I'm going on to the village! I'm not going to stick around and watch you cry like a pussy each time you do that stupid chakra absorption thing! It's pathetic!" Anko shouted over her shoulder.

"Oh that's bullshit! You took great pleasure in cutting me up over the summer as 'training'! You even have a fetish for my blood! You just want to get out of here so we wouldn't catch you getting off on seeing me in pain!"

"FUCK YOU, PUSSY!"

"BACK AT YOU, BLOODSUCKER!"

Naruto breathed heavily as he watched Anko disappear down the dirt path.

"Ah, lovers' spat. Once you've seen one, you've seen them all." Jiraiya said sagely after remaining silent throughout the entire exchange. Naruto looked over at him in annoyance as they started their walk toward the Valley of the End.

"What part of this is a lovers' spat!?"

_**I agree with the old pervert on this. You're outvoted two to one. **_

_I'm going to be the Hokage in the future and it's a dictatorship! Overruled!_

Kurama chuckled at her container's antics.

"Alright, let's just go to the valley and get this shit over with." Naruto declared after taking a deep breath to clear his head of Anko for the moment. However, he couldn't help but wonder if he may have hurt his friendship with her. He could only hope the bond was stronger than that.

**Six hours later on the same road in the opposite direction**

"I can't believe you forced yourself to do it six times. I know it was a huge area and you had to do it multiple times to get all the chakra there but even I think you pushed yourself a bit too far with that, gaki." Jiraiya spoke over his shoulder to an exhausted Naruto piggyback riding on his back.

"At least the chakra's potency went down over the years so it didn't hurt enough to knock me out each time." Naruto murmured back.

"Thank Kami for the small miracles." the godfather retorted sarcastically.

"Even with all the chakra I found, it won't be enough to get me over the 'wall'. I need more." Naruto grumbled sadly. Jiraiya sighed and wondered if this new project to control more of the Kyuubi's chakra would end in failure. Over the summer, they had discovered, to their dismay, that while it did change some of Naruto's body into characteristics similar to the demon fox inside him, it did not boost his attributes any more than a normal chakra shroud of the same level would have. While it was easier to keep control of himself in his chakra shroud, he was still unable to pass the three-tailed level. However, one bright spot in that setback was Naruto and Kurama could feel Naruto's body adapting further to adjust to the yang essence flowing through it. It felt like his body was simply waiting to absorb the right amount of yang essence before it could 'evolve' to the next step of controlling the demon fox's chakra better. All they needed to do was to absorb enough to achieve that.

"I don't know where else to find more of the fox's chakra. We already had you absorb everything from all the places we know of. The only option is that Orochimaru might have more of the chakra in storage but that's too risky for you at this moment." Jiraiya explained.

_**There's one more place I know of. **_

"Huh? Really?" Naruto spoke out loud to let Jiraiya know that Kurama had something of interest to discuss.

_**I wasn't sure if it was worth checking out but now that we know my chakra could still be around for at least a hundred years like at the Valley of the End, it's a viable option. **_

"You're saying there's still one more place?" Naruto relayed for his godfather's sake.

_**Yes, I'm positive the place will be saturated from top to bottom with my old chakra. I'm speaking of my den in which I've used for hundreds of years before that stinking Uchiha came and found me.**_

"Do you remember where this den is?"

_**It's located in what's now called Land of Iron. It's deep in the mountains there and the locals never venture that far into the mountains due to the treacherous conditions so I was never bothered. **_

"Land of Iron, huh?" Naruto repeated before he was jolted and nearly knocked off by Jiraiya straightening his back in surprise.

"Talk about incredible coincidences." Jiraiya spoke softly in shock.

"What's the big idea?!" Naruto yelled as he tightened his hold on his godfather's back.

Jiraiya was about to reply before he was stopped by something he saw farther up the road. He then smirked.

"Look who's still here." Jiraiya spoke over his shoulder to Naruto. Confused, he perked his head up to see who it was and was surprised to see the familiar purple pineapple-styled hair. The men could see Anko sitting on the side of the road, hugging her knees to herself as if she seemed to be waiting nervously for someone.

"Anko-sensei!" Naruto called out excitedly before he remembered the spat they had and sobered up quickly. Anko perked her head up at the voice and looked in the males' direction. Her face brightened up a little upon seeing Naruto before she frowned in worry when she noticed him riding on Jiraiya's back as if he was hurt. She pushed herself up to her feet and waited for the men to make their way down the road to her.

At that point, Jiraiya had to sweatdrop as he felt like he was in the middle of a stare down between Naruto and Anko as they seemed to be challenging the other to say something first. Before the Toad Sage was about to crack under the pressure, Naruto broke the silence with a dejected sigh.

"Anko-sensei. I'm sorry for what I said back there. I should be more considerate of your feelings about what I'm doing to myself."

Anko sighed as well before smiling slightly.

"Gaki, I'm sorry too. I should be more supportive of your goals, even if I don't agree with some of the stuff you're doing."

They nodded to each other smiling before all three continued their journey back to Konoha.

"A lovers' reunion. Once you've seen one, you've seen them all." Jiraiya sagely said, chuckling as he felt killing intent from two sources.

"What part of this is a lovers' reunion!?" Anko and Naruto shouted comically at the same time.

**Back in Konoha**

Naruto stood in front of his apartment building with a frown. It wasn't because there was something wrong with the apartment building. It was precisely what wasn't wrong with it that made him frown. There was absolutely nothing about the building to be wronged because the entire building had burned down to the foundations. Not even one piece of wood was left standing.

The boy mechanically turned his head from the smoldering pile of ashes. He turned to the right to look up at a slightly sweating visage of the Third Hokage as the old man silently awaited Naruto's reaction upon seeing his home of five years gone. Three ANBU were standing behind the Hokage looking like they were trying to hold in their laughter.

"I am finding this very suspicious, Hokage-sama." Naruto addressed him coldly as he studied the old man's comically sweating face.

"Don't be like that, Naruto-kun. The ANBU managed to save everything you hold dear from the building before it burned down so there is no loss on your part. It's just too bad we cannot find the culprit responsible for this."

Naruto swore he saw the Hokage taking everything he had to refrain from putting up air quotes around the word 'culprit'. He also heard one of the ANBU cough three times which sounded suspiciously like 'I did it'.

"That is precisely why I'm finding this suspicious." Naruto rebutted as he held out a scroll with all his belongings sealed into it. In his other hand was an inventory list of all his belongings that were saved.

"They got _everything. _Including the ones I've hidden so well that it would have taken several top ANBU hours to find and disable the traps around them. Your ANBU must have balls of diamond to do that in a building burning down around them. Unless they took their time finding everything over the summer while I was gone and then the already empty building 'accidentally' caught fire due to..." Naruto paused as he looked down at the incident report. "...a stray katon jutsu." he finished with a raised eyebrow at the sweating Hokage as the three ANBU behind him shifted uncomfortably.

"Eh. Whatever." Naruto said dismissively with a casual shrug causing everyone around him to face-fault, the tension totally gone from the air.

"Don't do that to this old man's heart!" Sarutobi shouted as he got up from the ground.

"Couldn't help myself, Jiji-san. I don't give a crap about this building. I'm just happy you guys took the time to save my stuff." Naruto said with a foxy grin.

*Ahem* "Due to this 'unfortunate' incident, and the fact that one of my subordinates failed to save one precious item that belonged to you despite his valiant effort..." the Hokage paused as the ANBU who coughed earlier stepped forward feigning regret as he faked wiping a tear from his mask, and held out the other hand to show a burned ramen packet that expired years ago. Naruto raised an eyebrow amusedly at the theatrics. "... we have decided to compensate you by offering you a room in a newer apartment building close to where I work. It is also populated by people who I believe favor you despite your unique status. I honestly think you will be much happier there than here, Naruto-kun." the Third finished with a bit of a flourish.

Naruto had to smile warmly at the extent his surrogate grandfather would go to make his life somewhat more comfortable but frowned as he thought of something.

"Are you sure, Jiji-san? Once the villagers find out, they'll try to vandalize that building too." Naruto quizzed.

"What I meant by saying 'people who favor you', I meant those who are active within the shinobi force. I would like to meet a villager who would risk vandalizing a building full of active shinobi, because that person would have giant balls of steel. Either that or he's so stupid I would need to have the medics crack him open for research." the Hokage said bluntly. Naruto chuckled.

"Thank you, Jiji-san. It's going to be nice to have a hot shower after so long."

"That reminds me. Your rent will include the utilities so it will not be possible for any utility company to cut you off this time, or they'd have to deal with a building full of angry shinobi."

"Alright. Show me the place!" Naruto exclaimed as he started walking with the Hokage and the ANBU escorts toward the new apartment.

**Later at the new apartment**

_It's a bit small but I'll take it. _Naruto declared as he flopped down on the couch provided with the apartment. This apartment was similar in design to his old place, only newer and the living room and kitchen were somewhat smaller compared to the old place.

_**Moving on up in the world, I suppose. **_Kurama said with a smirk.

Naruto took a few minutes to enjoy taking in his new surroundings before he heard a knock at the front door. Grumbling and wondering who it was, Naruto slowly got up from the couch to open the door. He was surprised to see Anko and Yugao standing there with housewarming gifts.

"Yo, gaki! The news spread throughout this building that we have our favorite blonde as our newest neighbor." Anko said with a smirk as she pushed her way in. Yugao politely bowed before entering the apartment.

"Yeah, seems like my old apartment had an unfortunate accident with a katon jutsu." Naruto said with some sarcasm as he offered for them to sit on the couch in the living room. The women giggled.

"You should be happy. Yugao-nee told me what kind of place it was from when _she broke into it_." Anko said the last few words pointedly as she glared at her older sister, who blushed at being found out.

"I'll get some tea for you ladies if you'd like." Naruto offered. The women nodded. A few minutes later, Naruto came back with cups for the women. Yugao took a sip and smiled happily at how good it tasted. Naruto was surprised to see Anko taking her cup of tea seriously as she took a careful sip as if to test it for something before sipping it some more in a casual manner and smiled in appreciation. Seeing Naruto's raised eyebrow, Yugao decided to explain.

"Anko-chan is big on tea ceremonies and properly brewed tea. You should see her in her formal kimino. She looks so adorable." she teased as Anko's face turned red.

"At least it's better than cleaning all of your swords all day! It's hell keeping the smell of your cleaning oil out of my clothes!" she shot back. Naruto laughed at the sisters' bickering.

"I look forward to seeing you perform a ceremony some day, Anko-sensei. I'm sure you'd look elegant." Naruto said with a bright smile. He was surprised and amused to see Anko look bashful with red cheeks. She nodded shyly in agreement before quietly sipping some more of her cup of tea as she avoided saying more about this subject. It was apparent she didn't share her hobbies often.

"Gaki, just call me Anko-chan already. Next to Yugao-nee and Nai-chan, you know me better than the rest of the village combined. I'm only your sensei when I'm teaching you something." Anko blurted out with a small blush on her cheeks as she adverted her gaze, finding the living room floor interesting. Yugao smiled warmly as she thought the summer trip with Naruto did her little sister some good. Naruto nodded with a smile.

"Ok, Anko-chan."

After a while, the women left Naruto to his own devices for the night. It wasn't long before he went to sleep on his new and very comfortable bed with a big smile.

**A few months later during the fall, at training ground 42**

Just-turned-eleven Naruto was enjoying the crisp fall air as he stood outside in the middle of the leaves-covered training ground. He took in a deep breath through his nose, enjoying the mixture of scents his sensitive nose picked up. He raised an eyebrow as he smelled a slight tinge of lavender mixed with the scents. Looking over to his left in slow motion, he saw a flash of long indigo-blue hair before he focused on the beautiful and smiling face of Hyuuga Hinata. She seemed to be moving toward him in slow motion, her long and silky hair whipping around behind her slowly in the fall wind. Naruto noticed Hinata's open hands slowly going up in front of her in an attacking pose. Confused, Naruto checked Hinata's face again only to see it wasn't a smile she was displaying, it was a smirk as she had her Byakugan active.

_Oh right. I'm in the middle of a spar._

On that cue, he saw his own closed left fist appear into view tense and coiled as if ready to unleash against the poor girl. Rather, the poor girl who was about to painfully jab most of his tenketsu closed if he didn't do something, so unleash it he did. With a sharp whoosh, Naruto's left arm was fully extended into a powerful jab in an instant and it would have hit Hinata's delicate face if she hadn't slipped past the fist by a hair's width thanks to her eyes. The only piece of her Naruto managed to get with that punch was her hair as it punched through the wall of dark blue hair floating behind Hinata. Naruto noted at this point that her hair felt good slipping over his extended fist before he was jolted by pain moving up through his arm. In a flash, the confidently smirking Hinata took advantage of his miss and managed to close several of his tenketsu in the arm with her newly developed personal style of the juken. Taking that as his cue to retreat, Naruto jumped back to gain some distance from Hinata with his left arm hanging limply at his side.

"Yes! You got him, Hinata-chan! Victory is ours!" A female voice screeched from the right. Naruto shifted his gaze between a smirking Hinata and the source of the voice, who turned out to be Ino as she celebrated what she thought was a sure victory.

"Troublesome. Ino, you know even without his left arm, Naruto is a dangerous foe. We need to be cautious." Shikamaru's voice spoke up from next to Ino. Naruto wasn't sure but he thought he forgot someone else. That someone else deemed this moment to be the right time to remind the blonde with a cry of "**Bubun Baika no Jutsu (Partial Expansion)!" **before a giant fist smashed into Naruto from behind. The blonde let out a grunt of pain as he was sent flying forward, trying everything he could to recover in mid-air and stay on his feet as he stumbled onto the ground, forced into a pincer position between Hinata and the Ino and Shikamaru pair.

"W-what the hell hit me?" Naruto groaned as he struggled to stay on his feet. If he fell to the ground, it would be his loss according to the rules for this spar. He only had time to realize the person that hit him was Choji before he froze in place. He struggled to break free of whatever was holding him before he saw a long shadow leading from his feet up to a pineapple-haired boy.

"**Kagemane no Jutsu(Shadow Possession) **success!" Shikamaru declared with a smirk.

"Yes! We finally got him! It took four against one but we got him!" Ino hopped up and down in place next to Shikamaru, cheering.

"I apologize for the sneak attack, Naruto, but Shika put me in place to attack you when you weren't paying attention." kind and gentle Choji bowed his head in apology as he walked up next to Ino and Shikamaru, though a small confident smile could be seen on his face. Hinata still remained on high alert as she watched for anything from Naruto even though he was trapped in the shadow jutsu. Her eyes were still blaring as she searched for any change in her blond friend's chakra network and she remained in an aggressive juken kata.

"Hinata-chan, you don't have to worry. It's over." Ino called out to the Hyuuga heiress. The indigo-haired girl smiled knowingly.

"Until I hear Naruto-kun say 'I surrender', we should not let our guards down. I'm going to disable the rest of his limbs. Continue to hold him in place please, Shikamaru-san."

"Troublesome." grumbled Shikamaru as he strained to keep Naruto in place. All four fighters stiffened a little at hearing Naruto chuckle lightly.

"You're right to be wary of me, Hinata-chan. Shika, out of the jutsu I managed to master by now, I can do one of them without seals even though it took a lot effort to be able to do reach that point. Can you guess what it is?"

Shikamaru widened his eyes before he looked around the battleground for any clue to his opponent's next battle strategy.

"He's generating a large amount of wind chakra in his system!" Hinata warned as she dashed in to try to disable Naruto.

"Your shadow jutsu can hold me in place, but it can't control my chakra when I don't need hand seals." Naruto said with a smirk as his gaze shifted down for an instant. Shikamaru realized something and looked down at the ground covered with dead leaves.

_The leaves!_

"Everyone, run! Get away from the leaves!"

At that moment, just when Hinata was about to reach Naruto, the blonde expelled a large blast of chakra-generated wind from his body in all directions. The gust was strong enough to kick all the leaves high up into the air all around the five combatants. Hinata let out a yelp of surprise as some leaves hit her face, stopping her dead in her track. The other three fighters looked around in surprise.

_I've got to hold Naruto in his place! I can't let the leaves distract us! _Shikamaru thought as he tried to keep his jutsu in place. However, he recieved a shock to his system when he felt his control slip and the jutsu dissipated, as if Naruto simply vanished from his hold. He looked up to see Naruto somehow standing next to the surprised Hinata, who tried to strike at him but Naruto deflected it with his right arm and pushed her to the ground with a hard shove to her abdomen. Because of the spar's rule of a fall to the ground being considered a knockout, Naruto's strongest enemy, Hinata, was out.

Straining to see through the still floating leaves, he tried to keep an eye on the blonde to see what he was going to do next but he was stunned to see him vanish into thin air. He heard a feminine cry to the right before looking over to see Naruto easily shove Ino to the ground as well. He disappeared again and the shadow user heard a grunt to his left. Shikamaru moved to see Naruto easily throwing the larger Choji over his shoulder to the ground with his one good arm. At this point, an annoyed smile came to Shikamaru's lips.

_That troublesome bastard...he's mastered _**Kawarimi(Substitution) **_to this level! To be able to substitute with something as small as a floating leaf without seals..._

The shadow user concluded this much before his troublesome friend appeared in front of him out of thin air, the blonde's usable right arm outstretched to prepare for a throw. Those mischievous blue eyes and that insufferable foxy grin were visible even through the thick cloud of floating leaves.

**Ten minutes later**

"I hate you." Ino whined with her cheeks puffed in anger. Hinata joined in with her own puffed cheeks too. They were looking pointedly away from a sweatdropping Naruto.

"Troublesome." Shikamaru snorted from his lying position on the ground nearby. He still hadn't moved from when Naruto threw him to finish the spar. At least Naruto was nice enough to have left him facing up so he didn't have to expend the energy to roll over. What a great friend he was. Choji was sitting next to him pleasantly eating out of his bag of chips. If he had any frustration from losing to Naruto, he was hiding it very well.

"He deserved to win because we let our guards down. Hinata was the only one who did everything right by being on guard from start to finish. We just didn't back her up quickly enough because of our complacence upon trapping Naruto." Shikamaru pointed out. Hinata dropped her puffed cheeks as she looked over at Shikamaru in surprise before blushing slightly.

"Ano...it is because I am so used to sparring with Naruto-kun over the years. He never gives up each battle until he had no option."

"I hate this! I thought when we started learning our clan jutsu this year, we'd have a chance to win!" Ino complained as she glared heatedly at Naruto, who put his hands up in a placating gesture.

"You almost did get me. Just don't give me too much time to think up a way out of any situation and it might be you who ends up winning." Naruto tried to appeal to his fellow blonde before quickly moving on to the next subject.

"Anyway, I got some treats for you guys. My neighbor, Anko-chan, left me some leftovers she got from her favorite dango shop. I can't stand too much sweets so I thought I'd see if any of you wanted to eat any before I throw them away." Naruto announced as he took out a scroll. Upon hearing the word 'sweets', Ino's bad mood changed completely to one of excitement as she eagarly awaited her portion of the treats. Everyone sweatdropped at the sudden change. Naruto noted offhandedly that Hinata seemed a little excited too. He unsealed the treats from his scroll to show a small selection of sweets. Ino smiled brightly as she grabbed several cookies while Choji was happy to pick out a piece of angel food cake. Shikamaru ignored the treats as he opted to do some cloud watching instead. Naruto watched as Hinata picked something out of the pile and looked over it with curiosity.

"Ano...Naruto-kun, what is this? I don't believe I have tried this before." Hinata inquired as she held her piece up for Naruto to see.

"Oh, that's a cinnamon bun. I don't usually eat one of these but you might like it. Give it a try."

**Hiashi's home**

A cold shiver went down one Hyuuga Hiashi's back as he dropped some paperwork onto his desk out of shock. He took a deep steadying breath to make sense of that awful feeling.

_I feel a great disturbance in the clan's balance sheet. It is as if many thousands of ryo cried out only to be silenced by a new and insatiable addiction. I have not felt this since Hitomi-chan discovered red bean paste. And why do I feel the need to strangle Naruto-san?_

**Back with Naruto and the gang**

Naruto didn't know what to say as he watched in stunned silence. Choji stayed still like a stone, his mouth wide open as he was forking in a piece of his cake. Ino had a hand up to her mouth in shock and her pale skin slowly turned bright red. Shikamaru raised himself half off the ground on his elbows, his eyes wide in shock as his face turned red too. Why were they all like this? It was because they were watching Hinata eating her first ever cinnamon bun passionately as if it was her lover.

Naruto watched in morbid fascination as he saw his best friend of four years slowly lick all the icing off the bun lustily as she panted heavily. She let out an occasional blissful shudder as her wet tongue licked up some of the extra icing. All the while her eyes were glazed and half-lidded as if she was in pure escasty. With all the icing gone, she bit into the bun slowly and sensually, moaning softly with each painfully slow bite until she finally ate it all. She then desperately licked and sucked loudly on her fingers for any left over icing before releasing each finger with a loud pop. Her four friends were still in shock at what they just saw of the shy and supposedly innocent Hinata. Hinata slowly turned her head toward Naruto, her desperate expression making him flinch. That was all he saw before he was suddenly tackled to the ground with Hinata straddling him.

Hinata was clenching on tightly to Naruto's jacket, panting and trembling as if she just had an orgasm. She lowered her flushed and desire-filled face to within inches of Naruto's, close enough that Naruto thought she was going to kiss him and, for some reason, he found himself welcoming it a little. However, it was not to be as he heard a faint voice from Hinata.

"...more..."

"Yes, Hinata-chan?" Naruto whispered as he strained to hear.

"I want...more of...the food...of the gods." Hinata murmured with shuddering breaths. Naruto allowed a moment of stupidity to happen when he tried to argue against an unstable Hinata.

"Ramen is..."

"DON"T ARGUE WITH ME! Take me to where I can find more of these buns of eternal bliss!" Hinata growled as she shook Naruto, her Byakugan blaring full force.

"Y-y-yes ma'am!" Naruto nodded frantically before he forced himself up to his feet with the panting Hinata clutching on tightly to his arm as if she was weak at her knees from pleasure. He let out a sigh as he looked over his three shell-shocked friends.

"If I don't come back alive, tell my plants I loved them very much." Naruto saluted as he and Hinata disappeared in a whirl of orange and black leaves, his trademark **Shunshin**, leaving three very traumatized children frozen in shock for hours until they forced themselves to forget what happened and they wondered what they were still doing there.

**At the dango shop**

Naruto and Hinata appeared out of thin air in front of the shop, surprising several outdoor patrons sitting outside enjoying the fall air. Hinata seemed to have regained some of her composure in the high-speed travel over here so Naruto was relieved when she only giggled excitedly at the prospect of getting more of the sugary goodness called cinnamon buns. At least she wasn't panting erotically and embarrassing herself in public. As Hinata practically skipped up to the counter, Naruto was surprised to hear a familiar voice.

"Gaki? Don't see you around here often."

Naruto turned around to see Anko sitting in a booth across from a young woman he hadn't met before. The new woman was beautiful with long and curly raven hair framing her pale and unblemished face. He found her unique red eyes fascinating and her bright red lips were a stark contrast against her pale skin. She was dressed in what looked like bandages wrapped and intertwined together into the shape of a short kimino. The new woman was looking at the blonde with appraising eyes that made him shift uncomfortably.

"Yeah, Hinata-chan here was about to juken me to death if I don't take her to where she could get more cinnamon buns. Apparently she found her 'ramen'." Naruto explained with emphasis on the word ramen. Anko opened her mouth and nodded in understanding before smirking.

"Don't you mean she found her 'dango'?"

"Really, Anko-chan? Are we going to fight over our own food of the gods again?"

"Nope, we're not. As long as dango is the best in the end."

"Oi!"

"Ano...excuse me. May I ask who they are?" Hinata appeared next to Naruto with her arms full of wrapped cinnamon buns. Naruto's eyes bulged out at the amount of the buns in this little girl's arms but then remembered he regularly ate that much of his ramen.

"Er...Hinata-chan, this is Mitarashi Anko, a friend of mine and a neighbor as well. She was also my sensei from this past summer. Anko-chan, this is my best friend, Hyuuga Hinata." Naruto did his introductions. Meanwhile, Hinata and Anko frowned slightly as they looked at each other, as if they could tell they were going to step on each other's toes around Naruto. Naruto bowed to the raven-haired beauty.

"My apologies, miss. I'm afraid we haven't met before. I'm Uzumaki Naruto. Just call me Naruto like everyone else."

The beautiful kunochi smiled gently at the boy's politeness before she spoke up.

"My name is Yuhi Kurenai and I'm Anko-chan's best friend. She spoke of you a lot. I want to thank you for saving her from harm a few months ago." Kurenai said with a grateful smile. Anko blushed slightly when her friend mentioned her talking about Naruto. Naruto put a hand up behind his neck sheepishly.

"Anko-chan mentioned you a lot over the summer, and you're welcome, Yuhi-san. Anyone else would have done the same thing in my place though."

"Take on three chunin and completely destroying them? I'm not so sure, Naruto-san. Also, please call me Kurenai. A friend of Anko-chan is a friend of mine too."

"Ano, what did she mean by saving Mitarashi-san?" Hinata interjected with a look of confusion.

"Oh, it happened just before I left for training so I never got around to telling you. She was being bugged by three annoying men so I put them in their place." Naruto said briefly.

"Put them in their place?!" Anko laughed before continuing. "Half of one guy's body is still in cast, another has severe post-concussion symptoms and still can't throw or handle any weapon with his left hand, and the last one will never get rid of his limp."

Hinata's eyes widened in surprise before looking worriedly over at Naruto.

"Wasn't that going too far, Naruto-kun?"

"Not for what they were about to do to Anko-chan, Lady Hyuuga. Naruto-san left out that particular detail." Kurenai interjected with a light frown. Hinata took in an intake of breath before nodding in understanding.

"Seems like you had the same situation with the gaki here, Lady Hyuuga. I recall an incident with Kumo a few years ago and this guy was the one who saved you." Anko pointed out with a grin. Hinata raised an eyebrow as not many people remembered who saved her after this much time had passed. She was intrigued by the fact that Anko remembered that detail off the top of her head, as if she was paying close attention to Naruto's life.

"Perhaps you just love saving pretty girls, gaki." Anko purred at the suddenly bashful Naruto. Hinata almost growled at the way Anko was being familiar with her Naruto and she decided to get his attention with hope of leaving.

"Hehe...don't be like that, Anko-chan. I just happened to be in the right place at the right time." Naruto said with an embarrassed blush before he felt a light tug on the back of his jacket. Naruto took a quick glance at his friend and saw Hinata looking somewhat subdued and seemed to be saying something with her eyes. Being a little dense, he mistakenly figured Hinata was getting impatient and wanted to go home to eat all of the cinnamon buns in her arms so he decided to wrap it up.

"Anyway, I suppose I should leave you ladies alone since I need to walk Hinata-chan home. I'll see you around, Kurenai-san. Anko-chan, see you later." Naruto and Kurenai bowed before he waved goodbye at Anko as he and Hinata left the shop.

Kurenai was impressed with the boy. She knew Uzumaki Naruto warranted special attention when her best friend talked about this person so much.

"I like him. He's nice and polite, and apparently strong too." Kurenai pointed out to Anko, who grinned.

"He's also fun to be around.. It never gets boring with him." she said with a somewhat wistful look in her eyes. Kurenai smirked as she decided to test her friend's reaction.

"He's also lucky to have the attention of the Hyuuga's heiress. It's clear she's got it bad for Naruto-san." Kurenai had to fight to keep her smirk from growing when she saw Anko's eyes flash with a hint of jealousy.

"Yeah, he is." Anko said with a slightly subdued smile.

_Oh, Anko-chan, you're starting to have it bad for him too. It's only going to get harder to resist when he becomes a shinobi and you stop seeing him as a child. _Kurenai thought. She hoped her friend would be ok in the future.

Anko watched the retreating backs of Naruto and Hinata through the shop's window and her eyes narrowed slightly on the Hyuuga heiress as the girl giggled at something Naruto said. She knew Hinata pulled Naruto out of the shop on purpose to get him away from her.

_That Hyuuga girl could be annoying. _

At the same moment, Hinata looked back through the dango shop's window to see Anko chatting with her raven-haired friend.

_I should be wary around that Mitarashi Anko._

**First day of the final year at the academy**

"Finally, today's the beginning of the end!" Naruto declared as he stood up in his chair and put a foot up on the desk as if to give out a dramatic speech. His friends and some of the classmates looked up at him.

"It has been a long and atrocious journey fraught with hazards, fangirls, emoness, boring teachers, fangirls, and more fangirls!" Most of the classroom chuckled at his humor while some of the girls fumed at being made fun of. One certain raven-haired boy glared over at the blonde. As they were laughing, they nearly jumped out of their skin when a loud voice filled the room.

"ALRIGHT, QUIET! IT'S TIME FOR CLASS!"

The shocked students shifted their attention to the front of the room to see a supersized male head on a normal sized body as he shouted. They blinked a few times before seeing that the head had returned to normal size. They saw this man was wearing a regular chunin outfit. He had brown hair tied back into a pineapple style and he had a long scar running across his nose. He was accompanied by a light blue-haired chunin, who stood quietly at attention next to the scarred man.

"My name's Umino Iruka. I will be your instructor for your final year here in the academy. This is my assistant Mizuki. He will be helping me with the practical instructions. I look forward to working with you all and I wish all of you the best of luck in obtaining your hitai-ate by this time next year."

As this was going on, Naruto decided to check his new teachers out. He sighed and shrugged slightly when he saw the obvious glare of loathing he usually got from others in Mizuki. Moving on to Iruka, he locked eyes with the chunin sensei. At first Naruto thought he saw the same look of hate but the scarred man seemed to have fought it down and put up a professional look. Naruto smiled.

_Perhaps I'll have a little fun this year. I'll have to watch out for this sensei though. A prankster knows another, even an ex one, and this guy is giving me that wary look. I may actually have some challenge when I do my pranks over the next year. _

Iruka narrowed his eyes on the infamous blonde prankster showing an innocent smile.

_He knows I'm going to keep an eye on him. Let's see if he can get any prank done while Umino Iruka is around!_

As the teacher and the problem student glared at each other challengingly, the entire classroom shivered as if they had a feeling they would be caught in the crossfire of something horrible soon.

* * *

**I hope you enjoyed this chapter. I enjoyed the wacky summer adventures between Naruto and Anko and the cinnamon bun incident and I hope you liked them too. The next chapter should be good, at least in my opinion. **

**Please be sure to review when you can. More is always better!**


	13. Ten Girls and a Boy

**Sorry for taking a while to get a new chapter to you guys. My old laptop went to the Great Scrap Heap in the Sky. I managed to salvage the hard drive the chapters of this series were saved on only to lose it to a new laptop that spazzed out big time a week later. After that the second replacement didn't come in the mail till after I've left for my holiday trip. I just got back and got settled in with my nice new laptop. Unfortunately, with the loss of my old HD, I lost a good portion of the current chapter and then I realized if I kept typing to put everything I planned into this chapter, it would've easily broke 25K words. I don't want this to be an uncomfortably long read for anyone so I'm splitting this into two chapter. You'll get what's basically the second half in Chapter 14 which should be posted fairly soon. **

**The usual thanks goes to LoverofLemons for his awesome help in getting this chapter to be enjoyable for your reading pleasure. **

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**WARNING: This story will contain mature language, sexual themes, and graphic depictions of violence and gore.**

**DISCLAIMER: I do not own Naruto or any of its characters.**

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**Chapter 13: ****Ten Girls and a Boy**

**One week after beginning of final academy year**

Naruto and friends were sitting quietly in a classroom awaiting their new instructor, Umino Iruka. To most normal observers, it looked like a normal classroom full of obedient students awaiting their sensei to begin their lessons for the day. However, a more keen observer, like any of the students occupying the classroom, was fidgeting slightly with palpable tension slowly rising in the air by the minute.

The students were awaiting Naruto's hazing of the new instructor like he had been doing at the beginning of every year since entering the academy. He always pranked the instructor a week after the start of each year to 'test' the person. So far, no instructor had survived the blonde's hazing intact and the classmates wondered if Iruka would be the one to do it. They were able to determine already that he was a capable and sharp sensei from the past week under his instructions.

Naruto was sitting in the middle of the class, leaning back and balancing his chair on its rear legs. His legs were resting on the top of his desk with his arms up behind his head in a relaxed manner. He was smiling lazily, as if he didn't have a care in the world.

"Oi, dobe! What're you planning for Iruka-sensei?" Inuzuka Kiba called out from the front row, his voice tinged with some nervousness. His small white ninken, Akamaru, barked out his nervousness as well from atop the Inuzuka heir's head.

"Don't worry, I won't be using fleas this time, mutt boy. Sorry again about last year. I didn't think they would jump on you guys that far from our last sensei." Naruto replied, but an amused smirk showed he wasn't that sorry.

"I feel loads better." Kiba grumbled sarcastically. "I just noticed you failed to mention there would be no collateral this time."

"Why make promises I'm not sure I can keep?" Naruto replied with a sickeningly sweet closed-eye smile.

At that reply, everyone in the classroom tensed as they became aware for anything, including the usually brooding Sasuke. A small and slender hand lightly swatted Naruto on the side of his head. It didn't even make him flinch. Naruto slowly shifted his eyes to the left to see a lightly glaring indigo-haired girl.

"Naruto-kun, you shouldn't scare people." Hinata admonished gently from her seat to the left of Naruto.

"C'mon, Hinata-chan. You know me. My pranks doesn't hurt people...too much." Naruto whispered the last two words but Hinata heard them clearly. This earned the blonde a glare more powerful than the famous 'Hyuuga glare'. Her patented 'Hinata glare' finally forced Naruto to raise his hands in a weak defense.

"For someone as sweet as you, your full-on glare's scarier than the rest of your clan combined." Naruto griped with sweat on his forehead. Hinata smirked slightly, somewhat proud she had some rein on who she knew to be the most powerful person in her age group. The couple heard an imitation of a whip being cracked. They looked over at Kiba to see him making whipping motions. The rest of the class sniggered as Hinata blushed lightly at the teasing. Naruto just laughed monotonously.

"Haha. That's funny coming from a clan heir so whipped by his mom and sister he might as well check if he grew a vagina yet." Naruto mocked with a smirk. That remark earned him a growl and a middle finger from the Inuzuka clan heir along with another light swat on the head from the Hyuuga clan heiress.

"I always knew he's dickless." an extremely pale and emotionless black-haired boy, dressed in all black and sitting in the last row, interjected in an even and monotone voice. Kiba growled with a comically angry tick on his head, looking like he would tear apart the next person who insulted him.

"Would you stop that, Sai!? What's with you and your fixation on...on...THAT part of men?" Sakura called out from her seat next to Sasuke with an angry and embarrassed blush on her cheeks. Sai turned his emotionless gaze toward the pink-haired girl.

"I apologize for inadvertently making you fantasize about the Uchiha's male anatomy, even though I'm convinced he's more likely to be dickless than Inuzuka-san."

"WHAT?! How dare you!?" Sakura growled as she got to her feet and raised a fist in a threatening manner. Sasuke developed a constant eye twitch while somehow managing to remain still in his brooding pose, despite his overwhelming desire to throttle the pale-skinned boy.

"He has almost all the females our age, and even some older ones, falling over themselves at his feet and he hadn't given any a second look. You have a better chance of becoming a raging lesbian than getting a date from him, howler monkey." Sai replied in the same monotone voice before finishing with a painfully fake smile. Sakura was so startled by such a straightforward insult that she just sputtered and sat down to let her brain reboot. Meanwhile, the whole class was chuckling at the exchange. Naruto suddenly stopped as he flinched.

"Clone outside just dispelled. Iruka-sensei's coming." Naruto whispered to Hinata as he set his chair back down on all four legs but he still retained his relaxed posture. Hinata sighed and decided to let the scene play out. A large part of herself did not approve of her future lover's hazing of their sensei but a small part found it thrilling. She wasn't able to cause too much trouble outside her clan's compound because she had to uphold the Hyuuga clan's reputation as the heiress. Because of that, she sometimes found herself living vicariously through Naruto's troublemaking ways.

All in the classroom fidgeted in anticipation as they heard footsteps growing louder outside the classroom's door. In the deafening silence, the usually quiet sliding door sounded like rough stones grating against each other as it slowly slid open to show a bored-looking Iruka looking at a clipboard. Naruto smirked as he twitched his left ring finger slightly, pulling a nearly-invisible wire taut.

"Oh whoops. Dropped my pen." Iruka innocently murmured as he let the pen slip out of his hand before bending down at his hips to pick up the object. At that exact moment, a hidden modified exploding tag on the doorframe burst into a small spray of pink paint, passing through the space Iruka's head was occupying just an instant ago right onto the unsuspecting face of Mizuki, who was walking into the classroom behind Iruka. The blue-haired assistant instructor let out a cry as he grabbed at his now pink face with both hands. Meanwhile, Iruka straightened up and continued, ignoring the commotion behind him as he resumed writing on his clipboard. Raising an eyebrow in intrigue, Naruto twitched his left middle finger this time.

Iruka made a sharp left turn toward a student sitting in the front row with a pleasant smile. Meanwhile, a filled ballon dropped from a hidden spot on the ceiling right under the spot Iruka sidestepped. However, the ballon still found a target as the temporarily distracted Mizuki stumbled right underneath it. The ballon burst on impact to cover the assistant completely in a white powder. Mizuki let out a strained cry as he started itching all over his body. Meanwhile, Iruka was speaking with the student he walked up to.

"I hope you're doing well after your injury the other day." Iruka pleasantly inquired of the unknown civilian student as Mizuki continued to itch in vain as he fell to the floor behind his colleague. Iruka, having finished speaking with the student, then turned toward the desk and started walking. Naruto had to hold in a chuckle as he made a discreet signal. On that cue, a meow was heard from an open window sill next to the teacher's desk in the corner. All students looked over at the source of the noise to see a mischievous-looking black cat on the sill meowing as it seemed to present itself as a tempting target for a certain animal. An observant person, like Hinata and Shikamaru, saw its deep blue eyes and the suspicious-looking white marks shaped like whiskers on the cat's cheeks.

The temptation worked as barking and growling were heard from Kiba's partner, Akamaru. Before Kiba could restrain his partner, the ninken suddenly jumped off his companion's head and ran in a straight line toward the open window. The black 'cat' meowed one last time before jumping outside. As the ninken was making his way across the classroom, he scrambled across Mizuki's body before doing a chakra-powered leap right off the poor assistant's crotch, making him cry out and whimper in a new world of pain. In the air, the ninken's flight trajectory would have intersected with Iruka's head as he walked through the dog's path. All the students tensed up as it seemed a collision was imminent.

"Ah, such a nasty crick in my neck. I'll have to see a medic about this soon." Iruka grumbled as he exaggeratedly stretched his neck to the side, allowing Akamaru to sail through the air unimpeded right out the window.

"Oi, you bastard! You'll pay for this later!" Kiba growled over his shoulder at a certain blonde before he followed Akamaru out the window while Iruka moved around the desk to sit down. A smirk grew on Naruto's face as he twitched his index finger to release the last trap he set up.

This sprung three hidden spring-loaded traps, releasing a blunt-edged shuriken each. All three shuriken flew from different angles toward the oblivious-looking instructor as he sat down in his chair. Iruka let out a yawn, his left arm stretching outward before blurring in different directions for half a second before going back to its original outstretched position, this time holding the three shuriken between his fingers. Iruka pretended to blink in surprise before bringing his left hand down to inspect the shuriken.

"Oh? How did these get into my hand?' Iruka innocently said as the entire class, except the still smirking Naruto, watched in stunned silence. Iruka's hand then blurred for an instant and it was empty.

"Whoops. My hand slipped." Iruka said in monotone as the three shuriken embedded themselves loudly into the front wooden panel of a desk sitting a row up and directly behind Naruto, framing the unflinching blonde's head. Most of the classes let out a gasp of surprise. Meanwhile, Hinata was about to unleash her patented glare upon Iruka for daring to risk hurting Naruto before the blonde put a hand on her shoulder.

"No worries. It was just an 'accident'. Right, Iruka-sensei?" he calmly said to Iruka while Hinata blushed slightly at the feel of his hand on her shoulder. Iruka smirked and gave a jerk of his head for the 'confirmation'. Inside his head was a different story, however.

_That kid didn't even flinch. I held back but an academy student should have turned into a whimpering heap at such a 'close' call. He must've gotten some training. Oh well, I'll think about that later. _

"Ok, quiet! Time to get started for the day." Iruka called out to the class, ignoring the trembling and groaning heap of Mizuki next to his desk. Meanwhile, Naruto was deep in his own thoughts as well.

_Thank Kami I got that hellish training from Anko-chan! I would've turned into a whimpering heap otherwise. _

_**That won't do for the container of the great Kyuubi no Yoko. Anyway, I suppose you're about to go all out on this scarred man since he 'passed' your test with flying colors? **_Kurama said from inside her seal with a snicker.

_Yup. I think this will be a fun year. The stuff I put up were child's play that I wouldn't be caught dead using otherwise. Time to bring out my big guns and see how he likes it. _

A cold shiver went through Iruka's body as if he just had the hand of Shinigami pass through him. He had a feeling he should have swallowed his pride and took a couple of hits but shook it off.

**Later one morning in Naruto's apartment**

Naruto woke up and stretched with a loud yawn in his bed. Morning sunlight was shining through the bedroom's window with a pleasant warmth. Smacking his lips, he slid out of bed and slipped into the bathroom for a quick shower before getting dressed in casual clothes. He then made himself a breakfast of oatmeal and toast. After eating it all, he let out a contented sigh.

"It's such a nice day to be off from class." Naruto murmured out loud. He then smiled as he heard his tenant's surprised snort.

_**Wha? Huh? Oi...why the hell did you wake me up? I was having a pleasant dream of chasing after rabbits my size. **_Kurama grumbled.

_I thought that was the case when you fell asleep before I left the mindscape last night. Your legs were twitching as if you were running. _Naruto thought with an amused smirk upon remembering such a cute sight.

_**Fuck you. I'm not a dog, dammit!**_ the demon fox growled as she stretched and let out a loud yawn.

_**Anyway, so what's on the agenda for today? You do recall I asked you to stop training for the day. You've earned some rest. **_

_I suppose I'll terrorize the population like usual. _Naruto could feel the fox grinning sinisterly at that statement. He then got up to go back into the bedroom and stood in front of a full-length mirror. He then put up a half ram hand sign and concentrated before his body was suddenly enveloped by smoke. What Kurama saw in the mirror when the smoke cleared away made her smirk excitedly.

"I happen to know who's out of the village for the day." Naruto said out loud in his new disguise's voice.

**Next day at Iruka's apartment**

Umino Iruka stretched out his arms and legs after he just stepped out of his small apartment. He groaned as he still felt somewhat sluggish. He returned late last night from his sudden one-day mission to a nearby village. He grumbled at the fact that he still got missions despite being a full-time sensei at the academy. As he made his way out of the apartment building, he decided to take a leisurely stroll through the streets of Konoha before stopping at the Hokage's office to drop off the mission report on the way to class.

As he turned a corner, he accidentally bumped into a woman and he instinctively reached an arm out around the woman's waist to steady her.

"I'm so sorry! I wasn't watching where I was going, ma'am. Are you alright?" Iruka tried to keep calm as he awaited the woman's reply. The woman, who had her hands on the man's chest, looked up at Iruka's face and he was surprised to see it was Haruno Saki, mother of one of his students, Sakura. The woman's shoulder-length pink hair tied up into a short ponytail and her sharp emerald eyes in addition to her beauty were dead giveaways. To add to her mature beauty, she was dressed in a tight white blouse with a red floral pattern of sakura petals. It showed the curves of her shapely B-cup breasts and toned stomach. To finish her outfit off, she wore a loose white skirt that went midway down to her knees, showing off her long and smooth legs with a cute pair of white casual sandals on her feet. Iruka had to fight down a blush.

"It's quite alright-" the woman's eyes widened upon recognizing Iruka. "-Iruka-sensei, it's you! I was hoping to find you after yesterday." Saki said in a warm and friendly manner. Iruka swore the woman seemed to almost press her slender but amazing body closer to his torso.

"Yesterday? Haruno-san, I'm afraid I-" Iruka tried to explain.

"Nonsense! You don't have to apologize. I'll admit the way you came up to me, held my hands so softly, and talked sweet nothings to me was surprising at first. You even dipped me in the middle of the street in front of everyone and whispered some naughty stuff into my ear before disappearing." Saki blushed on the last statement as she remembered what was said to her. Iruka was so stunned by her explanation that he almost didn't notice the pink-haired woman press her small but shapely chest tightly into his chunin vest as she continued.

"However, you made a widow like me feel something I haven't felt in years, and that's to be wanted." Saki said in a somewhat breathy voice with a mischievous twinkle in her half-lidded eyes. She slowly moved her hands still on his chest up to his neck to wrap her arms around it. She then gently pulled the stunned Iruka in close to leave three butterfly kisses along the scarred man's jawline, making him shiver in pleasure. Saki then slowly let go of the blushing man.

"I have to get to work. Maybe we can meet soon and discuss my daughter's progress in your class, among other _things_." she whispered the last word in a husky tone as she trailed a fingertip along the man's recently kissed jawline before walking off and disappearing down the street. The stunned man stood still there for about twenty minutes before he seemed to reboot.

"What just happened?" Iruka mumbled to no one in particular as he was alone on this empty street. He raised a hand to rub gently alongside his jawline and another blush adorned his cheeks. He wondered if she mistook him for someone else before his lips then broke into a small smile.

_Whatever happens, I'll explain myself next time we meet. Though I wouldn't mind seeing her again in a more personal setting. I've always thought of her as a beautiful but quiet woman but for her to be like __that..._ Iruka trailed off as a somewhat perverted leer crept its way onto his face before he walked away, shaking off the recent development for another time.

**Soon in the Hokage's office**

Iruka knocked on the office's door. After hearing 'Enter!', he opened the door and walked into the office only to stop suddenly in his tracks at the odd look the Hokage was giving him. He felt like that look was directed at him but he didn't remember doing anything to earn that scrutiny. Mentally shaking it off, Iruka made his way into the office.

"Chunin Umino Iruka reporting mission complete, Hokage-sama." he announced as he laid a scroll on the desk in front of the still confused-looking Hokage.

"Wait, Iruka-kun. You weren't here yesterday?" the Hokage inquired carefully. Iruka narrowed his eyes in confusion.

"Forgive me, Hokage-sama, but you must have been misinformed. I was out all day yesterday on this mission that you assigned me." Iruka explained as he indicated the scroll on the desk with his hand.

"It's just that-" the Third sputtered before realization dawned upon him. He then quickly schooled his features.

"Thank you for your hard work and forgive me for the confusion. You may go." the Third said with a nod. Iruka thought about pressing for an explanation but decided against it. He then left the office. The Third leaned back in his chair with an annoyed sigh.

"That solves everything." he said to no one in particular.

"It was Naruto-san yesterday, wasn't it?" Yugao's voice called out as she appeared out of thin air on the office's couch.

"I believe so, Neko-san. I have to admit I thought I was going senile when 'Iruka-kun' suddenly walked into the office, stared at me in the eyes for five minutes, and then started dancing around like a chicken while screaming unintelligibly. He then dived head-first out the window." the Third tiredly said as he indicated the specific window with a hand. "I waited with bated breath for ten minutes to hear any report of an unfortunate suicide before I decided it was a hallucination."

The cat-masked woman had to stifle a giggle as she remembered the incident before she thought of something.

"That wasn't a regular **Henge** he was using. All of us would've seen through the genjutsu right away. He was really transformed into Umino-san with all of his physical characteristics."

"Something tells me his 'tenant' had something to do with that. It would have been an amazing spying tool and that was probably why he didn't tell us about that particular effect of his **Henge**. He knew he would have been forced to train only for spying and then sent out, never to set foot in this village for years."

"The council would be heartbroken to have to send such a young and sweet boy out there." Yugao muttered sarcastically. "Not to mention the fact that the ANBU have discovered a disturbing pattern of many of our agents dying suddenly under odd circumstances after several years of spying. It's as if someone didn't want the veteran spies who've accumulated years of damaging information about Konoha to live any longer. Naruto-san may be in danger of that." she added with a serious tone.

"I agree there's a good chance of that happening. That's why you, Boar-san, Lion-san, and I are going to conveniently forget the past five minutes." the Third said nonchalantly but there was an edge of authority in his tone. Yugao and the other two hidden ANBU replied with a loud 'Yes, Hokage-sama!'.

"On that note, it's time to do some pest control. We've allowed an annoying fly to listen to what we wanted it to hear long enough. This recent information cannot get back to _that man._" the Hokage said darkly as he released a concentrated blast of his killing intent at a certain spot in the office before his right arm blurred for an instant. There was a wet squelching noise then a loud thud behind Yugao. The still-seated ANBU casually turned her head to see an oddly dressed female ANBU lying in a broken heap among some rubbish in the back corner of the office. The hidden woman apparently fell from above the ceiling upon being killed. Dark blood was pooling underneath the head from a kunai embedded up to the handle in her forehead. The featureless mask shattered from the kunai and the impact to reveal a frozen expression of terror on the young dark-haired woman's face. A large piece of the mask displayed the kanji for the word 'root'.

"I thought Root agents were trained to have no emotions. She certainly looked very frightened upon being found out." Yugao commented off-handedly as she gestured for one of her colleagues to radio for a clean-up squad. Sarutobi let out a sigh.

"That idiot ex-teammate of mine is convinced his little private force can successfully infiltrate the main force full of the most talented shinobi I have the honor of commanding. If he keeps this up, not even his political influence will protect him and I will personally eliminate him, evidence or not."

The Third could feel smirks forming on his subordinates' faces under the masks.

"Is there something you'd like to say?" he inquired with some amusement.

"I think I speak for all of us that we were just reminded you're still a full-blooded shinobi instead of a kindly grandfather figure a certain blonde and most villagers view you as, Hokage-sama." Yugao replied with a small bow of respect.

"The best shinobi in the village do get the big hat, after all." Sarutobi said dismissively with a smirk before continuing. "Anyway, enough of this gloomy subject. I hope Iruka-kun finds out he's been impersonated soon."

Yugao let out a chuckle.

"I'm afraid Umino-san will run into trouble on the way to the academy." Yugao explained upon seeing the Third's inquisitive eyebrow before continuing. "A friend came over last night to chat because she was angry and wanted to vent. Apparently, Naruto-san did something to upset a large group of people yesterday afternoon and word of it got back to her. She's out for blood this morning and poor Umino-san is probably walking right into her this very moment."

The Hokage and the two hidden ANBU winced.

**Meanwhile outside between the Hokage tower and the academy**

Iruka was walking leisurely toward the nearby academy building with the Hokage tower behind him. He forgot about the confusion in the Hokage's office for the moment and thought a bit more about his encounter with Saki earlier. He let a slight leer form on his lips as he thought about how Saki gently kissed along his jawline. He was so deep in his thoughts he nearly jumped out of his skin when a female voice called out and it was laced with restrained anger.

"Umino-san, I suppose that perverted leer was because you were thinking back to how you traumatized those people yesterday."

Iruka spun around to stand face-to-face with an extremely displeased-looking Yuhi Kurenai.

"Yuhi-san! What're you talking about? I was-" Iruka sputtered before he was interrupted by her sharp glare.

"Save your excuses! How could you, an upstanding sensei to impressionable children, walk through the streets of this village while loudly reciting passages from those cursed orange books?! Those streets were filled with young women and men who are now traumatized by Jiriaya's vile creations!" the red-eyed kunoichi snarled.

"Wh-wh-what?! That's impossible. I wasn't even he-" Iruka tried to calmly explain himself but Kurenai wouldn't listen as she blurred through hand signs.

"This is my best anti-pervert illusion! Enjoy your thirty-minute show of Gai and Kakashi making out with each other!"

Iruka's eyes widened in horror as the illusion took hold before he started to scream and fell to the ground twitching. His last coherent thought was: _It was that little blond bastard! I just know he had something to do with my day going to hell!_

As Iruka continued to scream and twitch on the ground while Kurenai walked off, the aforementioned little bastard Naruto and his friend Hinata were standing on the roof of the academy overlooking what just happened between the two adults.

"Ano...was what Yuhi-san said true?" Hinata apprehensively asked of Naruto, who was looking pityingly down at the still-screaming Iruka.

"It's not true." Hinata let relief start to fill her before it was shattered the next moment.

"After all, on my way here this morning, I saw most of the people that heard me reciting one of Ero-sennin's books walking out of a bookstore and they were carrying copies of the same orange book with huge blushes on their cheeks. They certainly didn't look traumatized to me like Kurenai-san claimed." Naruto cheerfully said with a foxy grin before being bopped on the head by a glaring Hinata. Avoiding the glare, Naruto jumped down to Iruka with a fuming Hinata following suit. He knelt down next to his sensei's twitching body and pushed the man's hitai-ate up out of the way to rest a palm on his forehead.

_Oi, mind helping me dispel the genjutsu?_

_**Of course I don't mind. Forcing someone to see the scarecrow and green idiot tongue-wrestling is an evil I wouldn't wish on anyone but any Uchiha. **_Kurama shuddered briefly before forcing a small pulse of her chakra through her container's hand. It was enough to disrupt Iruka's chakra pathways for an instant, shattering the horrible illusion of a naked Kakashi and Gai about to decide who was going to be the bottom. Iruka calmed down right away with a sigh of relief, but still out of it for the moment.

"Sorry, Iruka-sensei. I didn't think Kurenai-san would go that far." Naruto murmured before standing up. "Hinata-chan, let's go inside. He'll be up in a few minutes so we might as well wait for class to start." Naruto walked into the building with Hinata following suit, leaving behind a relieved Iruka dreaming of a certain pink-haired woman to wash away the horrific illusion he just experienced.

**Later that night in a hidden base somewhere under Konoha**

An oddly dressed ANBU appeared out of thin air kneeling in front of a heavily bandaged old man that seemed to be missing his right arm and eye. One of his most distinguishing characteristics beside these was the prominent cross-shaped scar on his chin. They were alone in a barren office that the old man was occupying for the time being.

"Report." Shimura Danzo commanded in a cold voice.

"Danzo-sama, Agent 052 is dead." the kneeling Root agent reported with no hint of emotion in his voice. The only display of emotion Danzo showed was a slight twitch of his visible eye.

"How did it happen?"

"The Hokage terminated her while she was conducting her surveillance in his office. From what I have gathered, he did not even bother trying to capture her or give her any chance to surrender."

Danzo couldn't control a slight intake of his breath at hearing the circumstances. His lone hand resting on the desk unwittingly clenched into a tight fist for a brief moment.

"If that's all, you may go."

The Root agent vanished from Danzo's sight with no acknowledgement of his dismissal. Now alone in his office, Danzo let out a small grunt of frustration.

_That accursed monkey! For how long did he know my agent was there? She was the best in stealth out of us and yet he found her anyway. How much of the information that he allowed to pass through her was for his own benefit and not mine? To hear he mercilessly terminated my agent without even bothering to try to capture her alive..._

Danzo felt a small shiver as he was reminded of his ex-teammate's younger, and far more ruthless, self.

_Yes, I will have to be more careful from now on. _Danzo mused to himself as his attention went back to some paperwork on his desk. Even the leader of a secret organization had paperwork to deal with as well.

**Later, a random alley in Konoha**

Naruto was speeding through an alley while laughing like a child. He looked behind himself to see a squad of five ANBU jumping along the walls and ground as they tried to keep up with the quick blonde.

"Oi! You might as well give up! Aren't those masks getting a little snug?" Naruto called out over his shoulder at the enraged ANBU.

"You bastard! Putting super glue on the inside of our masks is unforgivable! We'll get you this time!" one member of the squad growled as they pushed themselves hard to catch up with Naruto as they continued to speed through alleyways and buildings.

After a long chase throughout most of the village that included failed ambushes and traps, it looked like Naruto was going to get away unscathed as his superior acrobatics and stamina once again won over the ANBU. Just as Naruto was about to lose them with a huge victorious smile on his face, he was stopped cold in his track because of an arm sticking out of nowhere to pull a harsh clothesline on the blonde. The blonde let out a choking sound as he swung forward once and back from his neck before the arm wrapped around his head into a tight headlock.

"Oi..." a familiar voice jolted Naruto out of his daze. "...why the hell are you causing trouble for the nice ANBU, Naruto!?"

"Iruka-sensei!" Naruto blurted out before Iruka tightened his arm around his student's head more as he conked the top of it with his free hand. The ANBU that were chasing Naruto came to a full stop, staring at the scene in shock.

"Apologize right now for the trouble you caused them!" Iruka growled as he dug his knuckles into the top of Naruto's head.

"Owowowow! Ok! Stop that! I'll apologize! I'm really sorry, nice ANBU people!" Naruto yelled out as he struggled to get away from the noogie he was retrieving. The ANBU continued to watch this scene in dumbfounded silence.

"That'll do. As punishment, I'm making you help me clean the classroom today. No argument." Iruka said sternly before Naruto could complain. The sensei then released the grumbling blonde and sent him on his way to the academy. Iruka then smiled nervously as he turned toward the stunned ANBU squad and bowed.

"I apologize for my student's behavior. You should go see some medic nin for help in removing your masks. Good luck." Iruka calmly said before he was about to walk off. He jumped in surprise when all the nearby ANBU jumped in front of Iruka and bowed deeply at his feet.

"You are the one, Umino-sama! The only person able to tame our greatest enemy, the Damn Blond Bastard! Please teach us your ways!" all the ANBU said as one voice, which slightly creeped Iruka out.

"Er...what do you mean? I just caught him, that's all." Iruka said uncomfortably as he took a small step back from the ANBU.

"We have been trying to catch him for so long we thought it was now impossible. But you just came out of nowhere and caught him easily! Please, we need your guidance, Umino-sama!" one of the ANBU pleaded.

"Um...I'm sorry. I just followed my instincts and knew where to find him. I know his nature very well so it was somewhat easy for me to anticipate his actions to a certain degree. How about you just ask me to help you hunt Naruto down any time he causes trouble from now on?" Iruka said apologetically before walking away. The ANBU were disappointed at not being able to learn the tricks to catching Naruto but glad to have gained a valuable ally in their war against the Damn Blond Bastard.

**Later one day at the dango shop**

_You know, Kurama, I've been thinking. _Naruto lazily thought as he was people-watching from his seat at a patio table outside the dango shop. He took a stick of dango into his mouth to start munching on each ball.

_**Better be careful with that. We wouldn't want you to burn the few brain cells you have in your skull. **_Kurama retorted with a snicker. Naruto allowed an annoyed tick on his temple before ignoring the insult.

_I've been watching those people for a while and now, as much as I hate to say this, I think Ero-sennin is right. _

_**Oh my Kami! The great Uzumaki Naruto admitted another person is right! And it's the old pervert of all people! **_Kurama exclaimed in mock shock before laughing.

_You're annoying, furball! Anyway, I've noticed most men in the crowd always seem to leer at the most attractive women in the vicinity at the moment, despite the fact that some of them were with their girlfriends or wives. _Naruto said with a smirk at remembering seeing those 'unfaithful' men getting into trouble when their women caught them red-handed.

_**So you're admitting that old pervert was right when he said that most of the men are perverts, openly or not? I could've told you that a long time ago from my thousands of years observing humans. Almost every man has an inner pervert, and the old pervert is most likely proud that you do as well. **_

_Oi! I'm not like them! _Naruto tried to defend himself before his face exploded into a bright shade of red upon seeing an image pushed into his mind by Kurama.

_**Oh really, my oh so pure and innocent container? So who was the one who's been asking to see my highly detailed memory of a certain wet and naked purple-haired beauty every other week? **_Kurama said with a victorious and toothy grin, knowing she caught Naruto. Naruto sighed and conceded that point.

_I won't be open about it like Ero-sennin is, at least. Anyway, what do you think of me coming up with an anti-pervert jutsu? Something like Kurenai-san's scary genjutsu, only with the _**Solid Henge **_in my case._

_**Hm...that may actually work in many cases. Unless a man trains himself extensively to be resistant to a woman's charm, he would be surprised if you spring something like this on him suddenly and a split-second distraction could make a difference. Others will call this a moronic jutsu but this will be useful in some cases such as infiltration and seduction, if you ever have to go down that path. **_

_Ew, I hope not! No matter what, I'm not going to let any guy get anywhere close to kissing me, let alone go beyond that. Anyway, looks like I'll be spending today figuring out the perfect body for this then. I'll need reference materials. _Naruto concluded as he paid his bill and jumped up to the rooftops. Making his way to a nearby bookstore, he then henged into a plain-looking adult civilian before jumping down to the ground. He casually walked into the store and found the adult section. As Naruto grabbed a copy each of all the available volumes in his godfather's 'Icha Icha' series, much to his tenant's delight, he came across some magazines full of what he thought to be attractive women in various poses and different states of undress. As he was making his way to the sales counter, he overheard something that made his blood boil.

"...yeah, so I hear that snake whore and her hot friend usually go to The Drunk Kage every Friday. How about we go over to that bar tonight and get into their panties? I'm sure if we wave a wad of cash around that snake bitch, she'll be too happy to do whatever we want and her hot red-eyed friend may follow suit." a slimly-looking man leered with his two equally unsavory friends in one of the store's aisles. His eye twitching, the disguised Naruto slowly made his way behind the boasting slime. He then opened one of the magazines in his arms to a rather intriguing picture of a woman posing and then tossed it in the air.

The slime's two friends immediately looked up in the air as their eyes hungrily followed the flying porn magazine. The slime, since he was facing them with the magazine flying behind him, was confused at this sudden reaction. While the two men were distracted, Naruto discreetly kicked at the back of the slime's knee. It made the man fall to his knee with a small gasp of surprise while his two friends were still looking up in the air. Naruto then seemed to be innocently walking past the group of men, his stiff arm shoving the kneeling man's head hard sideway into one of the aisle's shelves. The man's forehead conked against the metal shelf loudly before he sunk to the floor, unconscious for a long while to come. This all happened so fast and when the man's two friends returned their attention to their friend at the sudden noise, they thought he just fell and hit his head. They went to his side, forgetting about the disguised boy that seemed to be nonchalantly walking by.

_That'll teach that asshole. _

_**You do realize that if they were stupid enough to actually try hitting on those two females, they will suffer a fate worse than death itself? **_

_I know. Still wouldn't stop me from wanting to defend my friends' honor and I at least made sure the pretty ladies will have one less group of men bothering them tonight. _Naruto explained as he made his way to the sales counter to pay for his 'reference materials'. A strange look from the female sale clerk didn't bother him as he left the store.

**Later in the afternoon at his apartment**

"Alright. I've looked through them all." Naruto declared with a huge blush on his cheeks as he sat cross-legged on the living room floor, the porn magazines he purchased lying open around him.

_**So have you figured out the perfect physique for your new **_**Henge****_? _**

_I'm not so sure. There are a lot of different features I liked when I looked through the magazines. I like small breasts as much I do large ones. I like slender as much as I do plump. It's hard to pick between them all. It'll take me a long while to find the perfect body that most men would pass out upon seeing it._

_**Why not create some clones and have them pick their own favorites and they parade around in their new looks for your judging? Just separate them so they study their magazines on their own and make sure they don't discuss anything with each other. **_

_It's worth a try. _Naruto decided with a shrug as he stood up to activate his apartment-wide privacy seal. His use of chakra would attract unnecessary attention and he didn't want to have to explain why he had porn magazines lying around his apartment. Putting his hands into a familiar cross-shaped hand seal, he created ten clones.

"Alright, minions! Each of you grab a magazine and split up. Do not discuss anything with each other and decide on your own which features make the best body overall. Line up here in thirty minutes and we'll get the show started!" Naruto barked and the clones let out a yell of 'Ossu!' before they picked out their magazines. Naruto then went into the kitchen to cook himself a quick dinner while his clones scrambled to their own studying spots.

Thirty minutes later, Naruto put his empty plate into the sink and returned to the living room to find all ten of his clones lined up.

"Each of you got an image in your head?" Naruto inquired and they all replied with an affirmative.

"Go ahead and transform."

All ten clones put their right hands up in a half-ram seal and smoke then enveloped all of them. After the smoke cleared away, Naruto suddenly sported a huge blush and had to work to keep from getting a nosebleed. Standing before him were ten of the most attractive naked women he's ever seen so far. Even Anko and Kurenai would be jealous of the clones.

_**Whew, even I feel a little hot under my fur seeing them. **_

Naruto raised an eyebrow upon the demon fox's admission. And it was clear the clones somehow heard the fox's compliment because they all blushed. Naruto put the new discovery of Kurama being able to communicate mentally with his clones aside for the moment.

_That's odd coming from you, considering you're a fox and I might as well just throw in the fact you said you're female on more than one occasion. _Naruto deadpanned.

_**I may be based on a fox, but after spending so much time with humans around me, I may as well be more human than fox in my thought processes. Whatever my nature and gender are, assuming I do not appreciate beauty in any form would be wrong, and those ten are certainly right up there in the beauty department. If there's one thing I would ever say truthfully about you, it's that you have an excellent taste in human women. **_

Naruto thought for a moment before shrugging lazily.

_This is probably not going to be the strangest thing I would ever hear you say in all of our life together so I'm just going to roll with this. _Naruto concluded before turning a critical eye toward the ten naked and blushing female clones. He noticed with some amusement that the 'women', despite being clones of him on the inside, were acting more like bashful maidens the longer they remained naked under his scrutiny.

Meanwhile, the clones' general thought process was taking an interesting turn.

_I hope he picks my look since I spent a lot of time thinking on that. However, I wonder why I'm suddenly feeling a little uncomfortable having Boss looking over us so closely. Is this how all females felt when men were checking them out in public? To think I was just looking at them in the same way as other men in these magazines! I think something's wrong with me for thinking this way but I can't help it! Ugh, I'm not liking being naked around a male all of a sudden now, even though I know I'm a copy of Boss' male persona on the inside. _

Upon looking closely at the clones, he discovered a few similarities between some of them. Seven of them were sporting his blond hair color in various styles. He particularly liked the hair color for his henge so he announced at the start that he would be eliminating the three clones that weren't blond; two brunettes and one black-haired.

_What?! It's clear those three are beautiful. How could Boss toss them aside so casually? They spent a lot of time on trying to impress the Boss and he just decides he wanted only blond hair? Typical man, focusing only on one or two features of a woman to go after instead of the whole picture. I'm going to let Boss have it if he keeps this up!_ was the current thought process of the female-looking clones starting to look at their creator disapprovingly.

Naruto immediately noticed a disturbing pattern developing in the three cloned girls being genuinely upset at being eliminated so quickly and the other seven clones were looking at him with some annoyance, apparently for being harsh toward their non-blond companions.

_It looks like they're taking on more feminine traits such as a female group's need to protect all of its comrades. Are they actually turning into girls on the inside instead of just the exterior? _Naruto thought, hoping for an answer from his tenant.

_**That seems to be the case, considering the thoughts I'm hearing from these clones. And I do think you're being a little harsh by cutting these three so quickly just because of hair color. They worked so hard coming up with their looks to please their creator, after all. **_

_You're joining their side too!?_

_**Why shouldn't I? I'm female too. **_

_You certainly picked the perfect time to actually act like a girl after all this time. I'm going to get this over with before this whole thing become even more fucked up. _Naruto muttered mentally as he looked at the seven remaining girls. He noticed the three eliminated girls standing off to the side with disappointed looks on their face. Damn it, even he was feeling a little bad about that.

Next, he noticed four of them displayed some youth in their features compared to the more mature features of the other three. He thought the somewhat innocent beauty of these four would appeal to a lot of men, himself included. Based on that, he eliminated another three clones. Once again, he dealt with the disappointment of the three 'girls' he cut as the other seven clones not only became more annoyed, but also got more vocal in protecting their 'female' companions and defending their beauties. He had to deal with some grumblings from the peanut gallery on the side and in his head as the demon fox put in her own opinion too. He was sorely tempted to dispel all of them this minute but he wanted to complete this version of his **Henge. **

He found one clone's curly and naturally tussled shoulder-length hair to be interesting. Another clone's short bob was something he didn't think of either. However he decided he wanted long hair for his **Henge **so he cut the short-haired pair, despite his other clones' and fox's growing discontent. Apparently they believed the curly-haired clone to be the most beautiful, even the ones that remained in the running.

Ignoring the revolting clones and fox, he checked out the last two clones closely. One had silky and straight hair done up in twin-pigtails and the second had long, alluring, and radiant waist-length curly hair. He liked both of the styles equally and their faces looked almost identical down to the whisker marks, so he looked at their bodies closely. The curly-haired clone was petite at five feet with a slender frame that had shapely teardrop-shaped B-cup breasts that did not seem small at all in proportion to the rest of the body. Light pink areola and nipples adorned the impressive breasts. He also noticed the somewhat wide hips as they stood out due to the clone's slender shape.

Turning to the twin-pigtailed clone, he felt the clone's body looked somewhat familiar. It was taller than the other clone by six inches and had more mass than the other clone's slender body with well-toned muscles all over and wide hips. The butt was well-rounded and plump, looking like a very tempting place to smack. The legs were long and shapely. The C-cup breasts, bordering on D, were a little big but perky with small dark red nipples and they looked to be a perfect fit for the clone's larger body. He then came to realize that this clone used the image of Anko's incredible body from that day in the hot spring. The clone apparently took that and, because Naruto did not catch the sight of Anko's front that day, added what it believed to be the perfect pair of breasts to Anko's amazing body and recreated it in its own image. Naruto always did find Anko physically attractive and he enjoyed her unique personality. Feeling a connection to Anko in this clone's image, despite its own modification of using a darker tan, long blonde hair done up in twin-pigtails, and different facial features, he made his decision.

Meanwhile, the fuming clones' general thought process was focused solely on branding Naruto as a male chauvinist pig and daring him to be a typical male and pick the one with the bigger breasts. The fox, having understood Naruto's thought process for what it really was, decided to give him a break. It didn't mean she would stop teasing her container since she was going to let the clones draw their own misunderstood conclusion about their creator and play along.

Letting out a sigh, knowing what would come when he made his choice, Naruto pointed at the twin-pigtailed clone.

"Alright, I'll go with this one."

"Of course you wou**ld pick the one with the big breasts!" **the clones, including the winner, and the fox chorused in perfect harmony.

"Whatever you want to think. I can't believe I'm having my own clones starting to act like real girls and turning against me over this. Not to mention you suddenly becoming girly, Kurama. This has been a really weird evening." the only male in the apartment muttered. "Now that it's over with, I'm gonna get rid of you and I'm going to forget about this whole damn thing."

Naruto was preparing to dispel the clones when he heard knocking at the front door. Forgetting about his current situation for the moment, Naruto walked over and pulled the door open to reveal Iruka.

"Hello, Naruto! I thought I would make a quick stop here and see how you're doing with your home life. Can I come in?" Iruka said with a wave. Naruto suddenly had a nagging feeling he forgot something very important just a moment ago but shook it off. Kurama smacked her forehead but silently snickered as she sat back to watch the shit about to hit the fan.

"Sure, come on in, Iruka-sensei. Please have a seat in the living room." Naruto said as he stepped back to let his sensei into his apartment. As soon as Iruka entered the living room, his eyes bulged out upon seeing ten very gorgeous and naked women standing in the living room. Naruto smacked his forehead for his short-term memory failure. The clones realized there were another man in the apartment and they did what any self-respecting male clones transformed into naked women would do. They screamed in the most girly way possible.

"KYAA!" All ten clones screamed cutely as they tried their best to run around and cover up their privates with their arms. For any observer, it would have been a very adorable and arousing scene to view. That was what Iruka, and Naruto to a lesser degree, felt as they watched ten young women scramble and falling over themselves for cover. In the next instant Iruka was blown backward from a massive nosebleed and he crashed into a wall behind him before sliding down to the floor completely unconscious, a perverted grin plastered on his face. Naruto wiped a small nosebleed from under his nose before he turned to the unconscious body of Iruka.

"Oi! Are you alive? On a side note, my new **Oiroke no Jutsu** works awesome!" Naruto exclaimed with a fist raised in victory. The celebration was short-lived as he stopped cold in his track when he felt a massive wave of killing intent from behind. Slowly turning his head around to see ten very pissed off clones looking ready to murder him, he let out a small whimper.

"You bastard! How dare you expose us innocent maidens to a stranger without our permission?! We'll teach you a lesson!" the twin-pigtailed winner of the contest growled as all ten clones cracked their knuckles. They then descended upon their creator to unleash their righteous 'feminine' rage upon him. As Naruto was being pounded into the floor with punches and stomps aimed at his very sensitive spots, he had one last thought before unconsciousness took him.

_So this is how Ero-sennin feels whenever he's caught peeping. I always knew he was a masochist. Also, this is the weirdest fucking day I've ever had all my life, bar none._

**Next morning**

Naruto let out a groan as he slowly raised himself to a sitting position on the floor of his living room.

"Ow...feels like I've been beaten up by ten women...oh yeah, that did happen." Naruto grumbled as he looked around the room. His clones apparently dispelled themselves long ago as he now processed their memories. He let out a shudder when he went over some of the very female thought processes of the clones.

_Note to self: Do not transform into a girl any longer than necessary. _

Naruto was surprised to hear a groan from behind him. He looked around to see Iruka still propped up against the hallway wall and he was rousing himself out of his nosebleed-induced unconsciousness. Smacking his lips, Iruka looked around until his tired eyes locked with the deep blue eyes of Naruto's.

"Um... hi?" Naruto nervously said as he worried about what Iruka would say about last night. He wondered if he would have to reveal the fact that he already knew a very advanced and forbidden variation of the **Bunshin** at the very least.

"Naruto? What happened last night? All I remember is coming inside and then I think something knocked me out." Iruka groggily asked as he shook out some cobwebs in his head.

"Um, it was a prank that sprang itself without my permission and it went wrong. It knocked me out too. I'm really sorry, Iruka-sensei." Naruto carefully said, hoping to avoid any mention of his clones or the fact that they were naked women. He tensed up a little as he watched the scarred man concentrate hard as he seemed to be trying to remember everything about last night. He then gave up and shook his head.

"That's alright. I came here to check on you and it looks like you were just up to your usual stunts. I should get going and leave you alone for the day. See you tomorrow in class, Naruto." Iruka assured with a kind smile as he stood up to leave. Naruto escorted him out before he closed the front door and leaned his forehead against it with a sigh of relief.

_Selective memory-loss? _

_**I would assume so. Imagine how a likely virgin like him would feel when he walks into the residence of an 11-year-old and sees ten very beautiful and naked women standing in the living room.**_

Naruto did an exaggerated 'That makes sense' shrug before going into the kitchen to make his breakfast.

**Later one day at a public park**

"N-n-naruto-kun? C-c-could you p-p-please get a-a-away from that t-t-thing?" Hinata stuttered as she stood trembling by herself about twenty feet from Naruto sitting in one of the park benches. Anko was standing behind the bench, bending at the hips over the backrest as she draped an arm loosely around the blonde's shoulders. She was fighting to keep her evil smirk hidden. The reason for Hinata's terror was slithering its way through Naruto's hands. A small purple boa constrictor.

"Why? This snake is harmless and she's fun to play with." Naruto innocently said as he held the snake up in one hand. Hinata took a fearful step back as she saw the snake being raised in the air.

"E-E-even so...I c-can't stand b-being around snakes." she murmured, her trembling pale eyes completely focused on her mortal enemy. Anko smirked mischievously, not being able to resist such a delicious opportunity, and whispered something to her pet. The purple snake gave a nod before springing out of a surprised Naruto's hand and landing a few feet from the stunned Hinata. It started slithering toward the increasingly trembling and whimpering Hyuuga. It wasn't long before Hinata broke and let out a shrill shriek as she ran away at full speed with the snake on her heels.

Naruto gave Anko an annoyed look over his shoulder as she stuck a tongue out with a giggle. Hinata's panicked yelling continued in the background.

"Anko-chan! What's your problem with Hinata-chan? I know you sicced the snake on her." he demanded.

"You'll have to figure that out yourself, gaki. It should be obvious." Anko teased as she wrapped her arms around Naruto's neck from behind and lightly pressed her bountiful breasts up against it. Naruto was stuttering upon feeling something blissfully soft and Anko was enjoying teasing him so much she didn't notice Hinata's yelling growing louder.

"NARUTO-KUN! SAVE ME!" Hinata shrieked as she ran straight at Naruto, jolting Anko and Naruto out of their brief skinship. Naruto set his attention upon Hinata in time to see the indigo-haired girl jump at him. On instinct, he reached out to catch Hinata's slender frame as she crashed into him, inadvertently straddling his lap on the bench. Hinata's actions also knocked Anko away as she stumbled backward a few feet with an annoyed growl emitting from her throat.

While Naruto started to make sense of everything after the collision, he immediately noticed his vision was blocked and he felt something soft enveloping his face. He also noticed his hands were grabbing on to something very soft as well. On instinct, his hands squeezed whatever were in them and Naruto heard a soft moan and felt something tightening around his head. It was when he finally realized his head was buried in Hinata's chest with her arms wrapped tightly around it and his hands were grabbing on to her butt.

_Aren't her breasts a little too big for an 11-year-old? They must be B-cups already! _

_**So it isn't enough for our playboy to see ten naked women the other day, he had to feel one up! **_Kurama interjected with an amused chuckle.

Blushing, Naruto immediately let go of his hold on Hinata's butt and started trying to pry her arms from around his head. Naruto thought he heard a low disappointed groan from Hinata when he stopped squeezing her butt but chalked that up to his imagination. However, she was keeping an iron grip on him as she trembled with adrenaline from being chased. She refused to listen to anything Naruto was trying to say as she tightened her hold on Naruto's head, burying him further into her chest. Naruto's tiny inner pervert was cheering this development.

Anko growled again in annoyance as she watched this scene unfold. Most of the times she met up with Naruto anywhere in the village outside their apartment building, Hinata always seemed to be there with him and she found herself fighting a little with the Hyuuga heiress for Naruto's attention. She wasn't sure why she was doing it, but she felt some sense of competition with the younger girl. She was hoping to scare Hinata away this time but it apparently backfired on her and she could tell Naruto was somewhat enjoying his unique position with Hinata at this moment. Picking up her pet that slithered cautiously to her feet, she gave the purple boa constrictor a slightly stern look.

"Weren't you supposed to keep her away, my sweetie?" Anko whispered in a half-annoyed and half-amused tone. The snake responded with a sad hiss as he bowed his head in guilt. Anko found this adorable and couldn't keep up her stern act. She smiled and petted the snake as she walked off calling out her goodbyes and leaving Naruto to suffocate in Hinata's chest.

Finally, after a few minutes of Naruto's muffled reassurances, Hinata let go of his head, very reluctantly on her part, and he took an intake of breath.

"Geez, you have such a strong grip when you're terrified, Hinata-chan." Naruto teased good-naturedly with a slight blush on his cheeks since he could still feel the softness of Hinata's developing chest lingering on them.

"Ano...I'm sorry. I know I should be better about snakes since I may encounter enemies using them in the future." Hinata murmured softly as she remained straddling him absent-mindedly.

"Don't worry about it. I'm sorry about Anko-chan. I wish I could say she's usually not like this, but it's in her nature to tease other people, to be honest. If you want, I can talk to her about leaving you alone when it comes to snakes in the future." Naruto offered. Hinata shook her head immediately.

"I need to get used to snakes, Naruto-kun. I believe Anko-san will be a big help with that if she keeps this up so please just let her do whatever she wants." Hinata said with a smile before she started to blush when she became acutely aware of the fact she was straddling the one she loved. She wanted it to last so she tried not to call attention to that. Unfortunately for her, Naruto noticed her blush and he seemed to have finally realized she was on his lap. Stuttering in surprise, he apologized and gently moved her off to sit down next to him on the bench, much to her immense displeasure. Naruto noticed her upset expression as she let out a frustrated sigh and he thought it was because he allowed her to linger too long in an intimate position with him.

_**Oi! Why the hell did you have to break that moment up? It was getting good between you two.**_ Kurama growled in annoyance. Naruto wasn't sure why his tenant was suddenly annoyed with him.

_Enjoying it or not, I can't do that to my best friend! She wouldn't like it._

_**Are you sure, Naruto? Have you ever stopped to think about what she actually wanted instead of just assuming she wouldn't like this or that?**_

_If she wanted anything, she knows she can just tell me. _

_**She could but she understands that it's important you figure this one out for yourself instead of getting the answer from her. She has some amazing patience, because she's been waiting a long time for you to figure out this one little thing. **_Naruto was about to quiz his tenant on what she was talking about when he was interrupted.

_**I'm not going to tell you any more about this subject so don't bother asking me. I'll give you a hint however. Think over your relationship with her up until now and see if there were things you missed. I hope the answer will come to you soon for all of our sake. **_

Thinking over what his tenant said to him, Naruto took a careful glance at Hinata who was still looking away in the distance with a subdued expression. Going over Kurama's words in his head, he couldn't help but have a lingering feeling that there really was something between him and his friend that he was missing.

**One day at the academy**

"The lesson's over. You're all dismissed." Iruka said authoritatively as all the students in his classroom cheered upon being released for the day. They all filtered out, some out the door and others out the windows. Iruka was watching all of this unfold, his eyes lingering on Naruto with some suspicion. Iruka was feeling a little antsy as there hadn't been a new prank from Naruto in days and it was grating on his nerves as he wondered when he was going to strike.

As he watched Naruto walk out of the class room with Hinata laughing about something, Iruka noticed something on Naruto's desk. Curious, he walked over to the desk to find a folded piece of paper sitting on it and he realized Naruto must have dropped it. With that thought, Iruka immediately went out into the hallway to look for Naruto and he was surprised to find the blonde already gone from the academy building within seconds of exiting out the classroom's door.

Letting out a sigh, the sensei returned to Naruto's desk and picked up the folded paper to throw it away. Iruka had often said that if there were anything left behind after lessons it would be disposed of so it was no one but Naruto's fault for not heeding his warnings. Before the sensei was about to drop the paper in the wastebasket, he caught a glimpse of a set of numbers written on the outside. As he stopped in his track and brought the folded paper up to his face to take a closer look, Iruka saw the set of numbers represented a date in the near future. The day after tomorrow to be more precise. Raising an eyebrow, he pondered over why Naruto would label a piece of paper as such for a future date. After quickly running through all the possibilities in his mind, he eliminated everything but one theory. Naruto was planning a prank in two days.

Iruka let out a disappointed sigh as his mind settled on that thought. He recently taught a lesson that written information left anywhere, no matter how secure it was, was dangerous for a shinobi. He taught that it was typically expected of a nin to immediately eliminate any paper trail leading back to him or her. For Naruto to have already forgotten one of the basic rules of being a shinobi, Iruka wasn't able to help but feel disappointed in Naruto for not being on top of his pranking game like usual this time. With that thought, Iruka decided to teach Naruto a lesson by stopping Naruto's upcoming prank before it even had a chance of happening. That way, he would teach Naruto not to leave information lying around and also have the satisfaction of stopping one of his pranks, an occasion that was getting too rare for his liking. Iruka then opened the folded piece of paper to read what it contained.

Ideas for a new prank:

Tnub drec vyga lutat saccyka vun cahcae du veht

Ev vuiht, drah fydlr res cbaht dra haqd tyo drehgehk ujan dra saccyka

Yht fneda y icamacc saccyka yvdan drec

Enigy-cahcae ec y buu-buu rayt

_So Naruto wasn't that careless after all. This is encoded, and it's at least decent. _Iruka observed as he quickly ran through popular cyphers most shinobi used in his mind only to find no match.

_I'm not going to let this beat me. I'll figure this message out and stop Naruto! _

With that determination, he folded the paper back up and pocketed it as he prepared to close the classroom for the day. He stopped at the library on the way and picked up several books on cryptography to see if he could figure out the type of code his blond student used. Arriving at his apartment, he quickly set about doing his usual routine for the evening. After dinner and grading his students' schoolwork, he finally decided it was time to work on the encoded message as he took out the folded piece of paper and laid it out on his desk. He then cracked open the first cryptography book he grabbed off the pile of books next to him.

**Next day**

It was early in the morning when Iruka let out a frustrated groan as he leaned his back into his desk chair and pinched the bridge of his nose. He felt a dull headache coming on and his eyes were hurting and tired from so much reading. He allowed a loud yawn.

_Damn it. I still can't break the code! I can't believe it's already five in the morning. I have to get ready in two hours. _

He rubbed out the tiredness in his eyes and stood up wobbling, feeling a little light-headed from being up all night. He decided a cold shower would wake him up as he stepped into the bathroom. After getting ready and eating breakfast, he walked toward the academy deep in thoughts about what Naruto's prank was going to be. Even though he knew the day the prankster would strike, he had no idea of the exact time, how Naruto was going to do it, and where it would happen. Iruka let out another groan as he entered the academy. He knew he was going to be spending all day thinking on this.

The next eight hours of class did nothing to improve Iruka's mood at all. He hated the fact that he was more distracted by Naruto's coded message than he should have been. He turned in a less than adequate teaching job and many of his students grumbled about a 'wasted day' as they didn't learn anything relevant. That was a blow to his pride in his professionalism and it didn't help he was very exhausted and irritable due to skipping sleep last night. To make all of this worse, Naruto did not even seem worried at all. Surely the blonde must have realized the paper on which he's written his prank's plan was missing by now? Instead, he just spent the entire class day chattering with his friends and being his regular self. Iruka growled slightly in irritation as he watched Naruto leave with Hinata as usual, still as carefree as he was when he came in. What was going on? Why wasn't Naruto worried about his plan possibly being revealed? Was he that confident in his cypher?

Iruka frowned at the last thought. Iruka worried that the prank Naruto was going to pull tomorrow would be huge if Naruto went so far as to write his plan with an cypher process that was extremely difficult. That concern was what convinced Iruka to pull out all stops on this one.

Shortly after leaving the academy, Iruka took a different path toward a plain and unassuming building next to the Hokage tower. Entering and walking through the dull and featureless hallways for a short while, he came upon the office of one of his friends, Hokusai Koyo. Knocking on the door politely, Iruka waited for a moment before a muffled 'Come in.' was heard. Iruka opened the door and stepped through into a small office to see a black-haired chunin in a regular shinobi outfit sitting behind his desk, which was covered with papers.

"Iruka! Please have a seat. Haven't seen you since our poker night last month." Koyo greeted with a friendly smile.

"It's good to see you too, Koyo. I look forward to taking your money again soon." Iruka replied good-naturedly as he sat down in a chair across from Koyo.

"Ha! That was luck for you. Anyway, I'm sure you're not here for a social call." Koko decided to get to the point of Iruka's sudden visit, though he kept his friendly smile.

"I'm afraid so. You know about my problem student."

"Uzumaki Naruto, right? I have to say he's a genius with pranks when you talk about him. Especially when he took your place for the day. Which reminds me...how's it going with Haruno-san? I'm sure that was an unexpected result even for Naruto." Koko said with a wiggling eyebrow. Iruka had the decency to blush.

"Yes. I think Naruto was surprised when he saw the two of us being friendly with each other one day at the academy. Saki-chan and I are making plans for our third date soon." Iruka said with a chuckle before continuing. "Her daughter's probably going to find out about me at that point. Hopefully Sakura-san will take it well."

"Keep me updated. Anyway, what has Uzumaki-san done now? I've noticed you have bags under your eyes as if you hadn't slept lately." Koyo inquired with a somewhat concerned expression.

"You're right. I haven't slept at all last night because of this." Iruka said as he took out the folded paper and handed it to Koyo before continuing. "That paper contains an cyphered message that Naruto wrote. He dropped it yesterday and I spent all night trying to decrypt it with some cryptography books. I've had no success."

"And it falls to me, Hokusai Koyo, one of the best cryptographers, to decode this for my dear friend." Koyo declared with some flair as he opened the paper up to read over the content.

"Yeah, I think you can figure this out. Also, you still owe me money from our last poker game and I'll let the debt slide if you do this." Iruka said with a smirk, enjoying seeing his friend grumble in annoyance at being reminded about losing in poker to him.

"Well, I would've done this for free because that brat's cypher is good. The fact that I haven't been able to figure out the key at first glimpse makes this a special one in my case."

"That doesn't sound good, Koyo." Iruka muttered, a little worried about his friend's chance of unscrambling the code in time.

"It's been getting a little boring here lately. Nothing like a challenge to revive the higher brain functions in my head."

"It might be just gibberish and this is the actual prank itself. I'd hate for you to spend a lot of time on this one if it's a bust in the end." Iruka offered, a little unsure of asking his friend to put in a lot of effort in this.

"This is a real code. I may not recognize the cypher he used, but I can tell this hides a legitimate message. I doubt this is known anywhere in the nations, though. I believe Uzumaki-san actually created this himself. Are you sure he's not just an average student?" Koyo inquired with suspicion and Iruka shifted uncomfortably under his friend's questioning gaze.

"His grades show he's directly in the middle of the field. Perfectly average in everything, now that I think about it." Iruka furrowed his brows in thought.

"I suggest you take a closer look at him. That Nara brat may not be the only one hiding his potential in that classroom of yours." Koyo advised as he continued to look over the code on the paper.

"I may have to. For now, if Naruto created this code himself, don't you need his key to even be able to figure this out?"

"It would make the job easier but part of our work as cryptographers is to find out the key for each different cypher. In addition to that, he made this an alphabetic substitution cypher. It means that it's plausible to figure out the key using the brute force method as I match each letter in the code with the correct one by trail and error. That brat's good and it probably would have taken you at least a couple weeks but this won't take me more than a night. I actually think he left this out on purpose."

"I thought about that too. Why even bother encoding this if he's going to have to decode it each time he makes adjustment to the plan? Naruto didn't seen worried that I found his message when I saw him in class today." Iruka murmured more to himself than to Koyo, but his friend heard it all anyway.

"Maybe he's wondering if he left his plan out, he could risk being caught before the prank this code pertains to occurs. Make it a bit thrilling for himself." Koyo offered as he continued to pore over the code.

"Sounds like him. He was complaining I was getting too easy to prank." Iruka grumbled with some irritation at his student's opinion. Koyo let out a chuckle.

"Anyway, I'm off tomorrow and I've got nothing to do tonight so I'll be happy to decrypt this for you. Come by my place in the morning and I should have the code broken and ready for you."

"Sorry to dump this on you and thank you so much." Iruka said with a grateful smile as he bowed.

**Next Morning**

Iruka yawned loudly as he walked down a street toward his friend's residence. He did not sleep well last night. Despite Koyo's assurance of breaking the code, Iruka wasn't able to help but worry constantly about what Naruto was going to do. Therefore, he allowed his mind to run a mile a minute as he went over what kind of prank his blonde nemesis was planning. With all of that on his mind, it was no wonder he slept only one hour in the past forty-eight hours. In the end, this has made him exhausted, irritable, and nearly unable to think straight. Iruka hoped he would finally get an answer this morning before dragging his tired ass to the academy so he could effectively intercept whatever Naruto was planning. After having caught and gloated over Naruto, he would then dismiss the class early so he could go back home and sleep like a log for the next twenty-four hours.

_Easy to prank, my ass. Wait till I catch you and you'll see how easy I am to fool, Naruto. _Iruka thought with a tired grin as he dragged himself into Koyo's apartment building. After dragging himself up some stairs, he arrived in front of Koyo's door and knocked. A moment passed before Koyo opened the door. He let out a yawn as he stood in casual sleepwear.

"You're here, Iruka, and you look worse than I feel. I've been up most of the night breaking that code and I slept for a bit before you came. Seriously, you look like you're about to fall over dead." Koyo said tiredly as he took in Iruka's haggard appearance.

"I couldn't sleep while thinking about whatever Naruto was going to do. I think I'll actually fall over dead after I catch Naruto but it'll be worth it." Iruka said with a half-assed smile. Koyo allowed a wince to appear on his face.

"Iruka...I broke the code. I'm afraid he's already successful." he said with some sympathy. Iruka's eyes widened then narrowed in confusion.

"Naruto did his prank? I haven't noticed. Nothing happened yesterday or even this early in the morning." Iruka tried to make sense of what Naruto did. Koyo let out a sigh and walked back into his apartment to retrieve his notepad with the decoded message. He returned and silently handed it to Iruka. Iruka looked down at the pad and his eyes widened as he repeatedly read over the message. A long moment of silence passed between the two men before Iruka broke it with a low chuckle.

"It can't be...he played me like a goddamn fiddle from the start." Iruka murmured dejectedly as he slowly sank to his knees. His chuckling grew into a somewhat deranged laughter as the pad fell out of his hand. As it landed on the floor while Koyo moved in to try to snap his friend out of the sleep deprivation-induced insanity, the decoded message was visible.

Ideas for n new prank:

Drop this fake coded message for sensei to find

If found, then watch him spend the next day thinking over the code

And write a useless message after this

Iruka-sensei is a poo-poo head

**Soon at the academy**

Mizuki walked into the noisy classroom. The unusual sight of just the blue-haired assistant walking into the room was enough to silence all of the students as they became curious about the whereabouts of their sensei.

"Due to an unfortunate aliment, Iruka-sensei will not be here today. We'll cover taijutsu today and the class will be dismissed early. On that note, move outside and get ready for practice." Mizuki announced before he walked out of the room with some students already starting to get up and cheering at being dismissed early. Hinata looked over at Naruto with a curious expression.

"Ano...Naruto-kun, was that because of the prank you said you were planning for today?" she inquired with a look that told Naruto he wasn't getting out of this one.

"Yep. All I had to do was write something in a piece of paper a couple days ago and let it play out. In other words, I made Iruka-sensei prank himself." Naruto said with a foxy grin. Hinata raised a delicate eyebrow at her friend's cryptic statement as they both walked out of the classroom.

_I guess that cypher you gave me worked very well. _Naruto thought to his tenant.

_**I wouldn't call it a cypher. It was actually a fake language I came across in a popular video game long ago. I figured since it's from a time long before this era but also somewhat easy to break with some effort, this language would be enough to keep that scarred man occupied for a couple days. **_Kurama explained.

_Video game? _

_**It's an electronic game you can play on a monitor. Since television was just invented once again in this civilization, that technology may not be available for another half century at least. **_

_So you're saying this fake language was created just for a game? That seemed like a lot of effort. _Naruto thought incredulously. _And you played some of these games?_

_**It was a different time back then. Despite the humans' tenacity to destroy themselves often, there were long periods of peace in which humans had no major wars so they found other things to do. It was boring for me so I spent a lot of spare time in my human form playing these games to pass the time. However, you wouldn't believe the frenzy some of those humans go into over some games, especially ones based on warfare. Even in peacetime, they still wage fake wars in games titled 'Call of Duty' and 'Battlefield' among others. **_Kurama grumbled at the end. Naruto hummed to himself on the inside as he thought over this before he blinked in surprise.

_You have a human form? _

_**You try going through thousands of years as a giant fox and tell me how that'd work out for you with humans all around you. Of course I took various forms throughout the history to avoid being bothered. Before you ask, this is my true form and I don't feel like showing you my fake human form so you'll have to curb your curiosity for another time. **_

_Oh well, not like it's important. If you say this technology you spoke of won't be around for another fifty years or so, maybe I'll be so awesome and legendary by then they'll make a game or two about me._

_**Ha! A Naruto game...yeah right. **_Kurama snorted.

**Omake #1**

**Iruka's First Date with Saki**

Iruka was sitting across the table from a frowning Saki in the middle of a somewhat luxurious restaurant. The scarred man fidgeted as he nervously awaited the beautiful pink-haired woman's reaction to the truth he told her about their supposedly first encounter. He wished time would hurry since each second they sat in silence felt like an eternity as he watched Saki contemplate what he had just told her. Finally, she broke the silence with a calm voice.

"So, Iruka-sensei, you're saying that when you supposedly came up to me out of nowhere and whispered naughty things, stuff that would make someone like Jiraiya-sama blush, into my ear, it was actually Uzumaki Naruto disguised as you?"

Iruka let out a defeated sigh. He knew he could ruin the first date before it truly began when he brought this up at the beginning, but his sense of honor would not allow him to lead Saki on any more than he had to. He resigned himself to the idea of Saki angrily leaving him at the table.

"Yes, Saki-san. I was out of the village on a mission and it was Naruto who transformed himself and took my place to cause some mischief around the village. Even though it was him who did this, it was my responsibility as his sensei and I truly am sorry for not clearing up this misunderstanding sooner." Iruka spoke softly as he steeled himself when he saw a flash of annoyance and dejection in Saki's brilliant emerald eyes.

"That's unfortunate. To be honest, I was actually happy when 'you' came up to me and made me feel wanted and appreciated. I apologize for putting you on the spot the other day. It's just I was so happy at the thought of a handsome and caring man like you coming after a single mother like me." Saki murmured in a dejected tone.

"It's true." Iruka blurted out forcefully.

"What is?"

"The thought of someone unimportant like me wanting to know a beautiful and strong woman like you. That was why I asked you out instead of just simply explaining this at the academy." Iruka declared with steel in his voice, making Saki's eyes widen. He continued, his gaze fully locked with Saki's.

"Since the first time I saw you walking into the academy grounds holding your daughter's hand at the beginning of this year, I've always thought you're a beautiful and wonderful woman. I could tell you're also a great and caring mother from the happy atmosphere between you and Sakura-san. I find that to be an excellent quality because of my job educating and caring for my students. I found myself wishing I could break through my professional attitude to get to know you on a more personal basis. While I am sorry for my student's behavior, I'm glad it ended up with us here. I could then explain myself properly so you would know exactly how I feel." Iruka said with a warm smile. Saki was dumbstruck as she found herself falling deep into Iruka's black but warm eyes. Before she realized it, her hand instinctively reached out for one of Iruka's hands on the table and gave it a squeeze. She took a shuddering breath as she fought to keep happy tears out of her eyes. She allowed a beautiful and grateful smile when Iruka gave her hand a squeeze back, his smile growing warmer.

"Iruka-sensei-"

"Please, there's no need for that suffix here."

"Ok then, I'll call you Iruka-kun if you call me Saki-chan." Saki affirmed with an impish grin that drove Iruka wild on the inside.

"You should know I've had my eyes on you since the beginning as well. The few times I've watched you teaching your students, I found myself getting attracted to your firm yet caring nature, especially when it involves Uzumaki Naruto." Iruka raised an eyebrow at the mention of the blonde. Despite his ongoing pranking war with Naruto, he came to find himself caring for the blonde's welfare the more time they spent pissing each other off.

"I've seen how the previous instructors treat Uzumaki-san with indifference. They didn't technically do anything wrong but, because of his...'uniqueness', everyone could tell no one wanted to have anything to do with that child. It made me angry that someone who had to carry a heavy burden like him was so misunderstood. But then I saw how you actively put your time into paying attention to him and to try to be firm with him, despite it being a useless venture." Saki giggled cutely at Iruka's indignant frown when she made a jab at Iruka's futile endeavor in teaching Naruto some restraint with his pranks. "I realized right there that you're very caring and would treat everyone, most importantly my daughter, with respect and tenderness they deserve. You're also the first man since my husband died seven years ago that I could imagine myself being willing to move on with. I was waiting and hoping for a private encounter with you someday after that. I suppose I have to thank Uzumaki-san for causing this to happen." Saki finished with a brilliant smile, in which Iruka returned with one of his own. They settled into a content silence, their thumbs rubbing each other's knuckles as they continued to hold hands.

"I have to admit I'm curious as to why he specifically picked me to prank that day." Saki suddely inquired with a cute pout as she furrowed her delicate eyebrows in a deep thought. Iruka couldn't keep himself from flinching in realization on exactly why that damn brat picked this gorgeous woman. Unfortunately for him, Saki noticed this and raised an eyebrow asking for an explanation. Iruka sighed in defeat before proceeding to explain his reasoning.

"Oh...that brat!" Saki growled, her cheeks red with indignation. Iruka had to work to stifle his chuckling.

"I can't believe this! He doesn't even know me yet he thinks I would be such a bitch that I'd make your life miserable if I latched on to you! On the other hand, I'm going to have a long talk with Sakura-chan soon about her obsession with that Uchiha boy and her behavior in your classroom as of late. I raised her to be better than this and she's too young to understand the difference between a silly crush and love." Saki finished with an annoyed pout, which made her unbearably cute to Iruka. He finally could not hide his amused smirk and he had to put his hands up in a weak defense against his date's annoyed scowl.

"I'm sorry, Saki-chan. I take responsibility for my wayward student once again, but you have to admit it made sense for Naruto to follow the old adage...'Like mother, like daughter'...in this case. However, it worked out the best for us in the end, should we decide to continue dating after this evening." Iruka added the last part with a smooth voice. Saki showed that heart-stopping impish grin Iruka knew was going to be his favorite smile from this woman.

"Well, if I am to be such a nasty bitch, I have no choice but to make your life more miserable by demanding that you take me out on more dates in which we enjoy ourselves and have a lot of fun getting to know each other." Saki said with fake haughtiness before breaking down giggling. Iruka showed her that knee-buckling smile and she knew she was going to regret sticking with her self-imposed rule forbidding naughty stuff on the first date.

Iruka reached for his cup of sake and held it up. "To Naruto for inadvertently having us start dating. I look forward to getting to know you more."

Saki picked up her own cup and clacked it with Iruka's, a happy smile plastered on her face. "Amen to that!"

**Omake #2**

**For the Icha Icha Empire!**

Naruto was walking down a busy street, mentally conversing with Kurama about random stuff. It was a beautiful day for a walk with no cloud anywhere in the sky. Naruto had to smile as he took in a breath of the cool and clean air.

His relaxing day was shattered by a scream of pure suffering and aghast.

"**NNNNOOOOOOOOOOOOO!"**

After recollecting himself when he nearly jumped out of his skin in fright, Naruto was curious about what caused such suffering. The voice sounded familiar too. He quickly jumped to the rooftops and followed the direction the scream came from for a few minutes until he came upon a pitiful scene.

Poor Kakashi was on all fours in front of a local bookstore, surrounded by confused villagers. He was crying like a child, his tears and snot staining his facemask. On the floor in front of the pitiful-looking Kakashi was a certain orange book lying open. That was an unusual sight to Naruto since he knew Kakashi would've thrown himself in front of any kunai aimed for any orange book and yet he was letting this book get dirty on the ground.

"Oi, what're you doing, Kakashi-sensei? You're looking pathetic blubbering like that out here and why is one of your precious porn books down there?" Naruto pointed at the dirty book lying on the ground. The blonde had to step back at seeing Kakashi snap his head up at him with an angry glare.

"To imply that this travesty to the Icha Icha empire belonged to me is a grave insult! I refuse to acknowledge that book was written by the great Jiraiya-sama!" Kakashi growled with newfound defiance. Naruto furrowed his eyebrows in confusion as he walked over to the book to pick it up and quickly scanned the first few pages.

"This is definitely written by Ero-sennin." Naruto confirmed after a moment.

"LIES! HERESY! BLASPHEMY!" Kakashi denied loudly as he broke down blubbering again.

"Not my problem whatever you believe. I know he wrote this because I helped him do some editing on this." Naruto said nonchalantly. Kakashi froze in his crying.

"What...did you...say?" the silver-haired jounin's voice was quiet and calm.

"I helped him, you know. He was worried about his writing style being too far out of touch with the younger readers so he asked for my help in figuring out how to change some of his usual terminology." At this point, Naruto turned his back to the older man as he talked. Kakashi slowly pushed himself off the ground to stand up straight behind the boy, his lone eye void of any emotion.

"Are you saying you're the reason terms like 'flower petal' and 'honey pot' have changed to..." Kakashi struggled to finish.

"To 'slit' and 'tunnel of love', yup." Naruto confirmed, unwittingly putting himself closer to death at the hands of a crazed Icha Icha fan behind him.

"And 'soft mounds' and 'bosom' are gone in favor of..."

"'Knockers' and 'tits'. That's correct." Naruto continued to dig himself a large hole, not noticing the cold feeling of foreboding emitting from the powerful jounin behind him, scaring all the onlookers away.

"So, you're the reason for my precious Icha Icha changing so much." Kakashi said in a sickeningly sweet tone with his lone eye crinkling into an eye-smile. Naruto finally noticed the change in his sensei when he flinched and slowly turned around to see killing intent emitting from the large man in waves and he gulped. They stood staring at each other for a long minute.

Naruto suddenly dashed off in an incredible burst of speed but Kakashi was already blurring through hand seals.

"**Kuchiyose no Jutsu!" **Kakashi shouted as Naruto heard multiple pops of smoke behind him. He took that as motivation to urge himself to go even faster. He turned a corner and ran straight down a mostly empty street, straining his ears to listen for anything. At first he was relieved to hear no sign of the man out for his blood behind him. However, that changed when he started to hear a rumbling and barking sound growing louder behind him. Risking a glance behind himself, he was nearly shocked into stopping upon seeing an Ancient Greek-style chariot being pulled by four of Kakashi's large summon dogs as it tore down the street after him. Each dog was wearing a menacing-looking Spartan helmet and barking wildly. Kakashi was standing on the chariot brandishing a long spear with a small pug named Pakkun on his head, wearing his own little Spartan helmet. The man urged his summons on and they were catching up on Naruto quickly.

"**DIE FOR THE ICHA ICHA EMPIRE!"** Kakashi roared with a comically angry expression while he prepared to aim the spear at the retreating blonde's ass. Pakkun barked lazily from atop his summoner's head.

Naruto's screams continued to echo throughout the streets of the village for hours after that.

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**Hope you guys enjoyed reading the chapter and the two omakes. I have to give credit where credit's due. The Kakashi omake was all LoverofLemons' idea. I just simply wrote it out. :-)**

**For anyone wondering about the encryption I used for Naruto's coded message, yes it did come from a real game. I'll give you a hint. It's one of the most popular games around. It was also released in 2001. These hints should make this somewhat less challenging. I'll put the answer in the next update coming soon along with a shout out to anyone who figures this out on first try without any prodding from me. If you have an answer, please PM me if you can so others have a fair chance of figuring it out themselves. **

**I wanted Saki to be a lovable recurring character in this story instead of being a vicious bitch that made Naruto suffer in every other fan fiction on this site and I wanted Iruka to get lucky and I thought they'd be an interesting match. I won't touch upon their situation too much in the future but you'll be hearing about the couple once in a while. **

**Please be sure to review when you can. Hope you enjoyed this chapter. **


	14. Everyone's got Issues

**Hazel: God****damn it. I've been gone for so long they're going to rip me apart when I post a new chapter! **

**Lemon: Or they could fall over at your feet and weep in revere of your awesomeness if you mange to write an epic 40,000 words chapter as a "Coming back to writing" present. **

**Hazel: Genius! **

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**On a more serious note, I apologize to this story's avid readers that stuck it out this far. Truth is I should have made the time to put up a hiatus notice well back in January since I had an emergency that took me away from my regular life for a good while and I simply had no time to even get on Fanfiction, let alone write anything. **

**That said, I spent the past few months thinking about what I could do with this story and try to improve on it. The truth is, even though I set myself to three girls as the harem in this story at the beginning, I always had this odd sort of itch that was kinda gnawing at me as I am writing further into the story. Even though I spent some effort bringing up Hinata, Anko, and to some extent, Temari, I still feel like this story is missing one or two more main female characters. I honestly felt if I eventually bring in one or two more girls I might be able to make this story more enjoyable for everyone but I'm not sure. At this point in the story, it's still easy to bring in any girl when Naruto has yet to even graduate. However, I know it's a bit of a change for you readers and I've determined a way to decide this for sure. I am going to announce something in the bottom A/N. For now, I want you to enjoy reading the first chapter in four months and we'll see you at the bottom. **

**Usual thanks goes to LoverofLemon for being a great help in writing this chapter. **

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**One more thing before we start, here are the list of readers who participated in a little contest from the last chapter with the correct answer. The correct answer to the question is the Al-Bhed language from the awesome game Final Fantasy X on PS2. **

**MarineWolf1994, Creepingdoom710, Macilnar, Megatyrant, Rio-Vena, Narakusoone, Devilheart435, Kid Coheed, Twin Fangs of Chaotic Insight, thekrazedone, Shadows of Vanity, Chaosweaver6139, Lord Farsight, EvilMoW**

**Thank you all for taking the time out of your day to answer that silly question. :-) **

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**WARNING: This story will contain mature language, sexual themes, and graphic depictions of violence and gore.**

**DISCLAIMER: I do not own Naruto or any of its characters.**

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**Chapter 14: Everyone's Got Issues**

**Early one morning in Saki's bedroom in the Haruno household**

Sunlight shone in from the bedroom's lone window through a crack in the curtain. The thin beam of light crept up the well-worn hardwood floor toward a queen-sized bed sitting in the middle of the room and up onto its rumpled red sheets. The light usually found a single woman sleeping comfortably in that bed many mornings for years. However, it crawled across two distinct bodies under the sheet this time. Umino Iruka was lying on his left side with his head propped up on his left arm. He was awake, naked under the sheet, and silently watching the other occupant of this bed sleep facing him with an affectionate smile. She was cuddled tightly into his chest with her left leg hiked high up on his hip and her left arm draped over his side. She was just as naked too as Iruka was constantly reminded by the seemingly unlimited expanse of sinfully soft skin pressed up against him under the sheet. Haruno Saki was sleeping peacefully using her other arm as a pillow with her shoulder-length pink hair splayed out behind her head. Her small and kissable lips were slightly parted, allowing her gentle breathing to caress Iruka's chest, tickling it a little. As his eyes took in the curves of her body, especially her perky and shapely B-cup breasts and the wide and tempting hips she occasionally swayed in front of him, he let his mind wander a little to something a bit more serious for the moment.

For the past week, he had been letting what his friend said bother him. Koyo had suggested that Uzumaki Naruto was to be watched closely but Iruka found it hard to believe that a notorious prankster like Naruto would have taken schoolwork seriously. To be honest, with all the time that blonde spent on pranks and getting into trouble, the sensei was surprised Naruto remained firmly in the middle of the field in terms of grades and skills. He could have been the dead last yet he did just enough to get average scores. That niggled at his consciousness a little as Iruka wondered if Naruto was actually not even doing his best at all. He knew he was going to run out of patience soon and try something to confirm if Naruto had been hiding his potential or not. He was jolted out of his train of thought when he felt a slight stirring in the woman cuddled up against his chest. Saki was starting to wake up but she still had her eyes closed. Sporting a mischievous grin, Iruka decided to give her a nice wake-up call.

Saki was almost surprised to feel an unfamiliar warmth next to her in bed that hadn't been there in the years since her husband passed away in an accident. She smiled slightly as she remembered last night after her very successful third date with Iruka and she absolutely relished the warmth her new lover's shinobi-trained body was radiating. She was about to open her eyes when she received a very pleasant shock. She couldn't contain a surprised gasp that escaped her mouth.

Iruka was reaching down under the sheet to touch all fingertips of his right hand to a sensitive spot on the outside of Saki's thigh he found last night. He felt his lover's body stiffen a little and, because her leg was wrapped around his hips, he easily felt the flexing of the muscles in the thigh as she lightly clenched her toes in surprised pleasure. His body tingled upon hearing Saki's gasp but her eyes were still closed. He then slowly moved his fingertips up her thigh and felt her shiver. A quiet but happy moan forced itself out of Saki's throat as she opened her emerald eyes to look into a pair of mischievous black eyes.

The woman started to writhe under Iruka's ministrations as he continued slowly ghosting his fingertips up the hips, onto the side of her torso, before inching close to one of her delectable mounds. At this point, Saki was whimpering quietly and arcing her body into the touch, desperate for more skin contact. Iruka decided to tease her by tracing his fingertips painfully slow once around her left breast, making her growl quietly in frustration, before he finally cupped it. Saki moaned throatily as she felt her sensitive breast respond enthusiastically to the rough texture of Iurka's hand. For Iruka, it may not have been the first time he fondled her soft bosom but it felt like it each time his sense of touch took in the amazingly smooth texture of her firm and supple mound. Saki jolted as if shocked when Iruka delicately rubbed his thumb against the hardening dark red nipple. He carefully rubbed it for a few minutes while the woman continued to writhe under the gentle teasing, her leg tightening around his hips and her arm that was draped over his torso withdrawing to rub his toned stomach. In the meantime, Iruka slowly slipped his other arm underneath the woman and wrapped around her waist. 'Safe' was the only word Saki had to describe the feeling that spread through her when the man pulled her close enough that her body molded itself to his.

Since her husband's death, she worked hard to raise Sakura by herself for the past seven years. Although she hid it well from her daughter, Saki almost had a complete emotional breakdown after Sakura begged her to give permission to attend the shinobi academy. How could she not feel nervous when her only daughter, the only true link between herself and her deceased husband, was going to throw herself into the kind of profession and environment that were unforgiving to women on nearly all levels? Especially if they were captured. She also dealt often with high stress in the cutthroat world of middle management until she finally obtained the top position in her bank. She did all of this to provide a comfortable life for her daughter and herself. She always thought she was strong by managing to stick it out alone through all the hardships just for her daughter but there always was a small void within herself that she wasn't able to ignore on more than one occasion. Focused on raising Sakura, Saki had forgotten about her own happiness and the feelings of safety and contentment she was used to receiving from her dead husband. Last night brought everything back to the surface for Saki and she felt like she suddenly found that missing piece of herself. The independent part of her hated to admit this but she truly missed the addictive feeling of being safe and desired that only a man like Iruka was able to give her in privacy of the bedroom. All of her worries simply faded away as if repelled by Iruka's arms wrapped around her and she had forgotten how much she loved that.

Saki smiled inwardly as she wasn't afraid to admit she would never think about dating other men because she decided Iruka was perfect for her. Each date only served to cement that thought further and last night left her completely unable to imagine going through the rest of her life without this man by her side in any capacity. To normal civilians, this was most likely moving too fast but Saki somehow understood how most shinobi worked from her observations. In this dangerous and fast-paced world, shinobi never bothered debating major life-changing decisions for too long and usually followed their instincts. From the look of adoration growing in Iruka's eyes lately, Saki knew he was letting himself fall just as hard for her as she was for him. The only thing that worried her was his dangerous life as a shinobi but she took solace in the fact that he was too valuable as a full-time sensei to see action outside the village's wall often for the foreseeable future.

Finally, Saki had enough of being teased by Iruka's ministrations. She quickly snaked her hand up Iruka's smooth chest and around to the back of his neck before pulling him in roughly for a soul-searing good-morning kiss. After a long minute of passionate kissing, they broke apart and Saki let out another pleasant moan into his chest.

"Good morning, Saki-chan." Iruka murmured with a dazed grin as he moved his right hand from her soft mound to rake fingers through her hair, carefully smoothing out a few strays. Saki sighed contentedly before kissing Iruka's chest a few times, making his body tingle each time.

"Good morning...that's a good way wake me up, Iruka-kun. You'd better do that more often in the future." Saki demanded lightly with a dazed grin of her own. They settled into a comfortable silence holding each other for a few minutes before the pink-haired woman suddenly spoke up.

"I can't believe you had your way with me six times last night and only Kami knows how many times I went over the edge from start to finish. My legs are still twitching a little and I don't think I'll be able to walk right all day." Saki murmured in awe as Iruka blushed. As if to confirm her statement, her leg draped over Iruka's hips twitched slightly, making him chuckle slightly before he continued in a worried tone.

"I'm sorry, Saki-chan. Was I supposed to do it once or twice?" Saki giggled cutely at his slightly guilty expression.

"Oh, Iruka-kun, you can do this to me as many times as you'd like! I think I'm one of the few women in this village that can handle a stamina freak like you. I guess all that time and energy spent chasing futilely after our resident prankster had to work out in other ways." she giggled again at Iruka's expression of mock indignation before continuing.

"You'll have to stick with me if you want to be happy in the love-making department." Saki slyly said as she brought her left hand up to his chest and spread out all fingers to softly caress it, making Iruka sigh in contentment.

"I never planned on going anywhere even long before our amazing night together. You do realize this was my first time and I most likely would improve with experience in the future?" Iruka supplied with a mischievous smirk. Saki's eyes glazed over at the implications before she fixed him with a lustful look that clearly said he wasn't leaving her clutches without adding to last night's total a few more times. Seeing this, his smirk widened as he removed his hand from her hair. Saki's disappointed groan turned into a blissful mewl when he cupped the same soft mound as before and started rubbing his thumb over her rock-hard nipple again.

"Oh Kami, please! I want - no..._need_ you to make me truly unable to walk upright today!" Saki begged huskily as she arced her body again into her lover's ministrations and moved in for another round of kissing. However, she was confused, and incredibly frustrated, when Iruka suddenly stopped everything and perked his head up, as if he was alert for something. He narrowed his eyes at the bedroom's door.

"I can sense someone coming to the door. It's most likely Sakura-san." Iruka warned quietly as he looked at her for any suggestion. Saki groaned in irritation before she sat up and pulled up the sheet to barely cover her bust. She looked around for any place to hide Iruka but the closet was full and the bathroom was out in the hallway. Worried, she looked back at Iruka only to almost yelp in shock upon finding him gone. He even made sure to hide any sign that another person was in bed with her in that little time! Already missing the warmth next to her, Saki straightened up just as she heard knocking on the door. She was relieved to note Iruka's clothes were discarded on the opposite side of the bed from the door, out of sight. She was usually messy with her own clothes so her daughter wouldn't even spare a glance at her pieces of clothing littering the room. Clearing her voice, Saki called out.

"Yes, sweetie?"

The door slowly opened to reveal a younger version of Saki, only with waist-length pink hair that was brighter compared to her own shoulder-length hair's dark pink. Not for the last time, Saki wondered if such long hair would have helped her daughter with being a kunoichi or if it was all for getting a certain boy's attention. Sakura was dressed as a civilian in a red t-shirt, navy blue capri pants, and white sandals. Her emerald eyes widened upon seeing her mother's state of undress.

"Good morning, mom. Decided to do without your usual lingerie last night?" Sakura said with a curious smirk as her eyes seemed to search her mother's figure hidden under the thin sheet. Saki blushed and literally felt Iruka raise an eyebrow in interest from somewhere in the room.

"So what if an old woman like me needs to feel sexy sometimes?" she grumbled, her blush growing. Sakura let out an exasperated sigh.

"Mother, you're a gorgeous twenty-seven-year-old woman with a successful career as a bank manager. You're not in the prime of your life yet and you already have a daughter about to live her own life soon if I graduate. Most women would kill to have your luck, job, and beauty. The only reason you took a while to get your position at the bank was because you had me early when you were just sixteen." Saki blushed even more and waved the compliments away.

"My beautiful flower, you know there's no need for you to hurry and be independent. Just please take your time deciding your own path before you even think of moving out. Anyway, is there a reason you came to see me?" Saki tried to change the subjects while noting, with some amusement, that her daughter was not-so-subtly checking her out. Sakura snapped out of her small haze and blinked a few times as if to remember what she came into her mother's bedroom for.

"Oh! Sorry, I forgot. It's just that seeing you like that made me think of how I would look in the future and I know I'm going to be so beaut-"

"Sakura-chan!"

"Right! Well, Ino-pi- I mean, Ino-chan invited me over to spend the day and night with her. I won't be back here until tomorrow. Would that be okay with you, mom?"

Hearing this made Saki want to jump around the room cheering at the top of her lungs for this lucky turn of events allowing her to be alone with Iruka longer. However, she had to keep her composure.

"That's gr-! (cough) I mean, that would be fine. I see you took my advice and decided to patch things up with your friend."

"Ha! It was more like an ultimatum-" Sakura stopped her muttering cold upon seeing her mother's sharp glare. "Not that I'm complaining, mom!"

"Just please keep in mind that if you had kept that behavior up, you would have ended up alone and bitter and there's no guarantee that Uchiha boy would keep you company." Saki reminded. She sighed when she watched her daughter frown.

"I may agree with some of what you said, mom, but I still want Sasuke-kun to notice me."

Saki pinched the bridge of her nose.

"I'm not going to interfere too much with which boy you like, no matter how wrong I think the choice may be. That's your lesson to learn if it turns out bad." The blatant insinuation that Saki didn't think highly at all of the last loyal Uchiha, despite most of the village's opinion to the contrary, earned her an annoyed scowl from Sakura. She continued anyway. "Just please take your training as a kunoichi seriously and keep up your eating. I have my sources and I'll know if you've been slacking off and skipping your lunches with that ridiculous 'diet'. I didn't let you beg me into allowing you to enroll in the academy just so you could come out of it weak and unprepared. You would risk being killed or, even worse for a young and beautiful girl like you, captured on your first mission out of this village."

"If I get on the same team as Sasuke-kun, he would keep me safe if I got into any trouble." Sakura declared with such conviction that not even Saki could try to rebuke her without starting a huge argument. Saki decided it was good enough that she managed to convince Sakura to improve her health and her relationships with other people for now. She would worry about her daughter's obsession with the Uchiha boy for another time. Saki flopped back down on her bed in exasperation.

"Ok, you can go. I'm not in the mood to make breakfast so you'll have to get something on the way or at your friend's house."

Sakura put on a happy expression and turned to leave.

"Here's a reminder though."

The young Haruno turned back toward her mother only to have her face turn red with an intense blush. Saki had thrown off the sheet covering her body and was striking a sexy pose. It was the most beautiful body Sakura had seen so far in her life and she got incredibly jealous of her own mother! She irrationally decided on the spot that she wasn't going to let Sasuke meet her mother until long after their wedding. Meanwhile, Iruka was wondering how the younger Haruno didn't hear the loud whoosh of all his blood rushing to a certain appendage on his body in an instant while he took in the sight of Saki posing in all of her divine beauty.

"I never needed to cut down on eating to get all of this. All I did was exercise regularly for a couple hours or so every other day. Imagine what you could get if you kept up a proper diet and did your training seriously." Saki said with a smirk. She had to stifle a laugh as she watched her sputtering daughter stagger out of the room in a daze and close the door. After a few long moment, she heard the front door to her house open and close. She relaxed in her bed.

"So what's this I hear about you wearing lingerie regularly? I thought that incredible red number you wore last night was just for me." Iruka's teasing voice echoed around the room. Saki blushed.

"So I'm a little vain and I like to feel sexy underneath my clothes most days. Any complaint?"

"I doubt it. Nothing beats your birthday suit, though."

Saki smiled brightly and stretched her body erotically, purposely flaunting all of her best features to lure the prey out of hiding.

"Alright, time for you to come out and play. On a related note, you'd better not have any plan today, because I'm not letting you leave this house." Saki called out softly as she looked around for any sign of her lover. She finally looked up directly above at the high ceiling and burst out laughing. Right above the bed was Iruka, in all of his naked glory, sticking to the ceiling facing down with chakra on his back, feet, and fingertips. He was sporting a sheepish grin.

"I suppose I'll have to keep you company, Saki-chan." he said in mock exasperation as he continued to stay up there staring down at her with longing in his eyes.

"I'm waiting for you to come down here anytime soon, _Iruka_-_kun_." Saki whispered his name breathlessly as she traced all of her ten fingertips in a sexy fashion all over her upper body, especially in circles around her breasts, to entice him.

"I actually like the show from up here." Iruka teased, making Saki pout adorably, but she couldn't help but revel in her lover's eyes hungrily exploring every single inch of her body. She slowly turned over to show off the flawless and curvy expanse of soft and pale skin on her back and rear end for his eyes to drink in.

"You got lucky just now." Saki purred as she turned her head upward with an impish grin. She started moving her cute derriere side-to-side in a slow rhythm.

"Oh really...and having you as my lover wasn't lucky?" the man on the ceiling replied smoothly even as he was being dazzled by her hypnotizing butt. Saki smiled happily at that compliment before her half-lidded gaze moved to a certain part of her lover's body.

"With that big thing you have hanging from between your legs, it's a wonder Sakura-chan didn't catch any glimpse of it in her field of vision, despite your best effort to hide up there." Saki said with a saucy grin. She got her reaction as she watched her lover sputter in surprise and embarrassment and he lost control of his chakra for an instant. He dropped from the ceiling with a surprised yelp and crashed onto the bed next to Saki, making her bounce once. Saki shook with laughter before gasping and becoming still when she felt a warm and muscular arm slowly wrap around her abdomen from behind. She then was pulled in closer with her back becoming completely flush against Iruka's chest. The amazing feeling of being safe spread throughout her again and it really was addicting and extremely arousing. She moaned lightly when she felt Iruka's lips ghosting gently and slowly up the side of her neck toward her ear. They inched close enough to almost touch her earlobe but not quite.

"You little tease." Iruka's husky whisper with the warm breath on her sensitive earlobe made her eyes flutter and her whole body shivered. Her breathing hitched each time she felt him slowly plant a light kiss back down her neck onto her shoulder and she became acutely aware of his hand on her abdomen inching its way slowly down to the hot and soaked spot between her instinctively opening legs. Saki's initial gasps turned to passionate moans as Iruka proceeded to show her what he thought was the appropriate punishment for teasing.

**Soon at the academy's target range**

Thunk.

A satisfying sound echoed throughout the shuriken throwing range. Iruka smiled as he marked down a perfect twenty-five next to 'Uzumaki Naruto' on his clipboard. Next to him was his blond nemesis with an outstretched hand in front of him. The boy stood at one end of a long target range with life-sized dummies set at certain distances from him. He had just hit the farthest target, set at fifty meters, in one of its eyes, a most likely fatal wound on a real human. That was his first attempt out of four. He needed to make all three remaining throws into fatal hits to get the full hundred points. So far, only Uchiha Sasuke, top in throwing, had been consistent with getting between ninety-five to hundred on each weapon throwing test. In comparison, Iruka noticed Naruto usually got seventy-five points.

Upon making the first shot, Iruka and Naruto heard a mixture of cheering and jeering from behind them as the rest of the class picked sides and rooted for Naruto to either beat Sasuke's most recent score of ninety-five points or to fail miserably. Iruka noticed with a small scowl that Sakura was still passionately cheering the Uchiha boy on and throwing some light insults at Naruto. Saki was going to be displeased hearing his report on her daughter later. At least she hadn't uttered her usual insult of 'Naruto-baka' for a while now.

"Next throw." Iruka said dully as he returned his attention to Naruto. The boy nodded with a confident smirk and took out another shuriken. It wasn't obvious but now that Iruka was paying extra attention to Naruto, he noticed several subtle signs of the blonde being too smooth and sure in his preparation. He barely managed to act like he only had three years of novice instructions in throwing. However, the key word was 'act'. Iruka suspected Naruto might have easily beaten Sasuke if he felt like it from how he handled his shuriken and kunai like an expert. What puzzled Iruka the most was why was this amazing child in front of him hiding his true potential? Now that he's paid attention to Naruto since Koyo's words wormed their way into his subconscious weeks ago, Iruka found signs that Naruto was holding himself back in everything but since he's had no solid evidence, he couldn't confront Naruto about this. The boy was clever enough to worm his way out of any possible confrontation looking like the offended party.

Thunk.

The sound shook Iruka out of his thoughts. A quick glance down the range confirmed the second shuriken embedded deeply into the farthest dummy's throat. Another round of cheering and jeering and another twenty-five points next to Naruto's name on the clipboard. It was time for a small prank of his own on the blonde. Iruka knew from observing this boy's past tests that Naruto usually followed a pattern of 25-25-15-10 with his four throws, which added up to his usual score of seventy-five points. Iruka wasn't going to let that happen this time. He figured Naruto had set a predictable pattern because no student or instructor had bothered to notice it. Iurka was willing to bet the boy got complacent in his throwing, as if he was just going through the motions ever since the students first picked up shuriken and kunai. A little psychological trick was likely going to throw a wrench into the blonde's mental gears.

"Second throw." Iruka lied as he kept his voice to barely a whisper only Naruto heard to avoid any of the students gathered nearby calling the sensei out on it. It worked as Iruka did not notice any change in Naruto's focused expression upon hearing the deliberate misdirection, and didn't realize he was off count now. Naruto quickly took another shuriken out and flicked his wrist expertly. Iruka's eyes followed its flight trajectory all the way to the farthest dummy.

Thunk.

The third shuriken struck true in the center of the forehead. Iruka was impressed because that part of the dummy was made thicker than the rest of the body to stimulate a hard skull. The shuriken embedded itself almost halfway in. It was a fatal hit, no question. Iruka barely contained his smirk as he marked down another twenty-five. His eyes flickered over to Naruto as the boy seemed to have realized his mistake in getting complacent, if the widening of his blue eyes was any indication. He then wondered what Naruto was going to do since the lowest amount of points awarded on a hit was ten. If Naruto made another hit, it would push Naruto's score into above average for this one test compared to his usual streak of perfectly average scores. On the other hand, he may deliberately miss the dummy completely to get the automatic zero and keep the score seventy-five if he was desperate enough. However, that was a one-way ticket to constant jeering for the remainder of his academy days. Not even the worst student in class missed a target completely at this point.

"What's the total now?" Naruto's eerily quiet voice drew Iruka's attention to the blonde and his insides just about froze upon seeing the boy's icy glare in his direction. Naruto was obviously really annoyed about his sensei tricking him. Forcing himself to look directly into Naruto's narrowed eyes took a bit of effort but he succeeded.

"S-seventy-five. The next shot will push you up into above average for this test. I think it's about time, too." Iruka said resolutely as he kept his steely gaze leveled with Naruto's. Naruto just closed his eyes in irritation and let out an annoyed sigh.

"Sorry. I'm just not used to any sensei caring about me. However, it's annoying having you meddle here at this point." he whispered, making sure his classmates didn't hear the conversation between him and his sensei. Iruka felt some irritation, and a little hurt, at being dismissed as meddlesome.

"I know what I'm doing. Just let me do my own thing, please." Naruto added, his piercing gaze boring into Iruka's eyes before the sensei turned away.

"Fine. I expect an explanation for this soon. So are you going to miss here at the risk of being jeered mercilessly to keep your perfectly average score?" Iruka challenged with a smirk. Naruto's eyes flashed with annoyance again before he then let out a calming breath before schooling his expression.

"No, I hate missing. I'm just going to make you regret pushing me this far." Naruto said with a smirk of his own as he took out his final shuriken in his right hand and winded back much farther than Iruka had seen from the blonde. With a loud grunt he swung his arm down with all of his effort before releasing. Iruka's alert eyes didn't pick up the flying shuriken at all.

**BOOM!**

The sensei and the rest of the class jumped at the sudden explosion. Iruka immediately gathered himself and cautiously looked down the range at the farthest dummy, now obscured by a cloud of dust and splinter, with a growing sense of dread. When the cloud cleared, the male onlookers' pained groans and the females' murmurs of disbelief filled the air as Iruka stared in stunned silence. No one noticed Naruto had already disappeared from the range. The dummy remained mostly intact with the exception of a jagged fist-sized hole where its 'crotch' once was. Barely keeping his shaking hands from instinctively covering his crotch for protection, the pale-faced Iruka slowly brought his clipboard and pen up to mark the final twenty-five points.

"U-u-uzumaki N-naruto gets the top score today with a hundred points due to his four fatal hits, e-e-especially the l-last one." Iruka stuttered in a high-pitched voice. Not even the extremely pale Uchiha Sasuke could bring himself to feel jealous over Naruto's score and display today.

Much to Iruka's annoyance, Naruto adjusted his total average to his preferred level when he deliberately limited himself to fifty points on the next shuriken test. To add more to his sensei's irritation, Naruto disguised this lower-than-usual performance by 'attempting' to throw all four shuriken at the same time with one hand in the test, something he never displayed before that day. It took all Iruka had to not put down another hundred out of spite for the damn brat. In his opinion, Naruto actually threw the shuriken exactly where he wanted them to go anyway. It took Saki's soothing words later that night to bring Iruka out of his bad mood, which slightly worsened a little when she laughed uproariously upon hearing what Naruto did.

**Soon in the Hokage's office**

"Burn, you little bastards. Burn, damn you!" an old man chanted out loud as he glared heatedly at several tall stacks of paper sitting before him on his desk.

"I'm sorry, Hokage-sama. That's not going to work." a male's voice cautiously called out from his hiding spot next to the bookcase on one side of the office The Third Hokage's shoulders slumped.

"An old man can only hope, Lion-san. Especially a long-suffering unable-to-retire old man!" Sarutobi Hiruzen muttered grouchily.

"Why not just use a fire jutsu to dispose of them?" Yugao's voice helpfully interjected from the office's couch across the room from the bookcase.

"Because it can be traced back to me, Neko-san. At least if all of the paper here combusted from nothing but my glaring, any of you would say it happened without my involvement due to 'insufficient proof'."

"You think we would get you into trouble, Hokage-sama? When we've sworn to protect our beloved and amazing leader from any danger, including mounting paperwork?" Yugao softly spoke with a hint of mock hurt in her tone.

"No, I have faith in all of you to keep me out of trouble." the Third replied with a grandfatherly smile before his expression instantly turned deadpan.

"You'd just blackmail the hell out of me instead."

"Damn right!" all three hidden ANBU chorused with grins.

After a moment of chuckling all around, Boar, who was hiding up in the ceiling just above the Hokage, suddenly spoke up.

"Oi, Neko. I've noticed you seem to get the nice and easy spot on the couch often lately while I'm once again close to accidentally shoving my head up my ass with a sneeze here in this tiny space. Is it just my imagination?"

"I don't know what you're talking about." Yugao quickly replied in a too-innocent tone while subtly shifting her gaze away from the ceiling, even though she was currently camouflaged.

"Oh, I do know. Neko-san was nice enough to blackmail me into assigning her that spot often whenever she's guarding here. That was in exchange for keeping quiet about my certain preferences in literature from my lovely daughter-in-law." the Third clarified with a smirk as Yugao cringed upon being made.

"So you don't mind me 'accidentally' letting it slip to Kanae-san about the 'literature' you keep hidden in the desk now?" the cat-masked woman grumbled as she felt Boar's annoyed glare aimed in her direction.

"I would've minded if she hadn't found out on her own, Neko-san. You'll be happy to know the talking-to she gave me was the stuff of legends. In the meantime, you'll have to find something else to blackmail me with while you enjoy the lovely and comfortable spot up in the ceiling for the next seven shifts here." The Hokage grinned as he felt Yugao flinch under her camouflage.

"We are going to have a nice chat after this shift on the difference between joking and actually blackmailing our great and wise leader, Neko. Especially on the folly of messing with the one who signs our paychecks and assigns us to as many suicide missions as he wants." Lion teased good-naturedly while Boar grumbled but the promise of changing to a more comfortable position for the foreseeable future cheered him up some. The female ANBU let out a defeated sigh.

A knock was heard on the office door a few minutes later. The Third called for his guest to enter and in stepped Umino Iruka with a determined frown on his face. Sarutobi raised an eyebrow in intrigue as he watched Iruka walk briskly up to the desk.

"Hokage-sama, I have questions about my student, Uzumaki Naruto, that I think you can answer as the academy's headmaster."

"Ah, what has he done this time, Iruka-kun?" the Third muttered wearily as if he repeated that line hundreds of time.

"No, he's been good, at least so far this week. He's been getting perfectly average grades in everything now, which is why I'm here." Iruka said nervously while the Third stared blankly at his subordinate. No one said anything for a moment.

"And...is that an issue, Iruka-kun? I am not aware of any rule barring students with average grades from graduating." Sarutobi slowly said with a raised eyebrow, trying to pull more information out of Iruka with a gentle 'go on' gesture. However, the wise leader caught on to where this conversation was heading. He awaited the young man's conclusions as he fought to keep a knowing smile from forming on his lips for the moment.

"It's normally not an issue except when I believe Naruto was holding himself back in everything. For what reason, I don't know, but I feel it's a waste of his potential if he does not try to get the praises and achievements he deserves!" Iruka blurted out. He wasn't expecting the old man's reaction however.

"Alright, looks like I won! Pay up!" Sarutobi called out with a huge grin as he held a hand up in the air. Iruka heard grumbling from around him before three sharp whooshes filled the air and a small pile of coins and bills suddenly appeared out of thin air on the outstretched hand.

"I'll have to go after Kakashi-kun and Dragon-san for the rest of my winnings." Sarutobi said happily as he pocketed his hard-won money. Iruka stared incredulously at his superior.

"What the hell was that?!"

"That was me winning the betting pool."

"The betting pool." Iruka repeated, his voice calmer and less bewildered than it should have been.

"The one in which we bet on how long it would have taken for you to notice Naruto-kun's true potential. I'm the only one that picked this week for when you finally found out." Sarutobi explained as he leaned back in his chair, basking in his victory. Iruka could only stare in stunned silence.

"When Hokage-sama assigned you to this year's class, we knew your famous professional attitude would have you pay close attention to Naruto-san's performance. We then believed you would be the first sensei to find out he was hiding his true strength. With that, we made bets on when you would put together the pieces. I had you down for a month after the upcoming summer break." Yugao explained as she appeared out of thin air sitting on the couch. Iruka looked over to stare at the purple-haired ANBU incredulously for one moment before he snapped out of it.

"Putting that aside, it's obvious I was correct in my assumption based on your reaction, Hokage-sama. The question now is, what are we going to do about Naruto? He should be recognized for his true skills. You know how tough his life's been and he deserves some positive attention coming his way." Iruka quickly moved the conversation along to forget about the surreal situation just now. The Hokage and Yugao secretly felt proud when they saw that Iruka seemed to have quickly gotten over the fact Naruto carried the demon fox that killed his parents.

"Don't worry about this. I've been keeping an eye on him for far longer than you have and I know exactly what he's capable of. Please let him do whatever he likes. For now, he should be enjoying his time with his friends and having fun." the Hokage spoke with a stern expression.

"But-"

"But nothing, Iruka-kun. He will be rewarded and recognized for his hard work and talents. You can be assured of that because I already have a plan for him when he graduates." Sarutobi asserted.

"If you say so, Hokage-sama. I hope for an explanation someday, though. It's just that I don't like looking the other way when a student is obviously holding back." Iruka grumbled somewhat dejectedly as Sarutobi smiled gently.

"Look at it this way, Iruka-kun. A major part of being a shinobi is to keep most information about him hidden for maximum advantage. In that regard, Naruto-kun is already the best student in an academy that trains shinobi. You just have to look at this from a different angle, not from a grade book. Plus, this is also making my job much easier when I assign teams after graduation."

"Hokage-sama?"

"If he had been the rookie of the year or dead-last, I would have been forced to assign him what may have been incompatible teammates because of that 'tradition' of balancing out the top male and female students with the dead-last. At least this way, if he remains in the middle of the field, I can assign him wherever I need him to go." the Third explained, also cleverly hinting at what he was going to do with Naruto. Iruka didn't seem to pick up on that hint as he let out a sigh and gave a reluctant nod.

"I suppose that makes a little sense. Thank you for explaining some of your reasons. I look forward to seeing the extent of his true potential some day." Iruka replied with a hesitant smile before he excused himself from the office. A moment of silence passed.

"So you hear Umino-san finally got laid last week? And at the ripe old age of twenty-two, too! That's practically over the hill in shinobi years." Lion's awestruck voice broke the silence.

"And just what the hell am I supposed to be at my age, Lion-san?" Sarutobi grumbled in mock offense while Yugao failed to fight down her giggle.

"Hokage-sama, you're fucking immortal. That's what the hell you're supposed to be." Boar joked from above, making everyone chuckle.

"Credible source?" Yugao queried as she stretched to get some soreness out of her body from sitting for so long.

"As good as it gets. One of my friends saw him slipping out through the main bedroom window at the Haruno residence early one morning. His hair was down and his clothes were somewhat ruffled. My friend thought nothing of it until he realized the implications yesterday." Lion reported.

"Your friend's a little slow, isn't he? Even a five-year-old could tell Umino-san got some from those signs." Yugao said unimpressed while everyone felt Lion shrug in weak defense of his friend. After a moment, Yugao suddenly stood up and exclaimed in realization. Everyone's attention snapped to her.

"I just remembered we set up a pool about his virginity! We need to find out who picked last week!" Yugao said excitedly.

"I did." a deep voice sent the room into a dead silence as all ANBU looked over at their leader in stunned disbelief. A victorious smirk was plastered on one Sarutobi Hiruzen's face as he raised his hand into the air, outstretched.

**One spring day at Training Ground 42**

"You're a tough bastard to fight." Naruto muttered as he shook off some numbness in his right hand. In front of him with his fists up was Aburame Shino, standing tall in a light gray trench coat closed all the way from bottom to top. The coat's tall collar and his dark sunglasses obscured most of his stoic face so that only his spiky brown hair was clearly visible. The heir to the insect-using clan that relied on logic instead of emotions shifted into a defensive kata.

"I would say the same about you, Naruto-san, albeit in more polite terms." the tall boy replied in an even tone that didn't betray any emotion he may have inside. Naruto just showed a challenging smirk.

"Let's continue, shall we?"

"Indeed."

With a quick shout, Naruto dashed in to deliver a hard right that Shino effortlessly parried with his left. That started off a flurry of punches and kicks that narrowly missed each other as they both displayed technical excellence in their fighting styles; Naruto with his modified academy style and Shino with his clan's style that focused primarily on grappling and submission moves. The style was designed to easily transfer the clan's famous kikaichu bugs onto the opponent via prolonged contact.

"Who knew the clan we supposedly viewed as primarily trackers and long-distance fighters would have such a nice close-quarters fighting style like this?" Naruto commented with no hint of surprise in his tone while he gave a head slip to a palm strike that grazed his cheek while he stepped into his opponent's guard to throw an elbow to the sternum which was blocked by Shino's other arm. Naruto quickly transitioned his arm from the elbow strike into a rising backhand heading directly for Shino's nose. It was easily blocked when Shino quickly shifted his arm up to intercept it before he tried to snare the fist and attempt an arm-lock takedown and submission, only for the blonde to slip out of the bug-user's personal space in the next instant.

"It would be illogical to leave ourselves vulnerable should our opponents manage to get in close. Just as it would be illogical for you or anyone else to automatically assume us weak in that regard." Shino answered in his usual stoic tone as he stepped in to feign with a left jab then a right grappling attempt that didn't fool Naruto one bit when he suddenly shot his right leg out into a powerful forward thrust kick to push his opponent back. Shino, upon seeing his feigning attempt fail, quickly mirrored the kick with his own right leg and both thrusts connected solidly with each other's torso. The resulting clash pushed both combatants back fifteen feet until they dug in their heels to stop sliding any farther. However, despite the exchange, neither really took any damage. Naruto flashed a feral grin while Shino's sunglasses glinted with intent before they dashed at each other ready for more sparring.

"Wow. Not including Naruto, I think Shino-san's on par with Sasuke-san and Kiba-san in taijustu. I wonder why he doesn't show much of that skill in classes." Ino commented in awe as she watched the spar with Hinata, Shikamaru, Choji, and Kiba. They were sitting on the ground at the edge of the clearing to give both Naruto and Shino space, while they rested from their own training. Hinata, as expected, was watching Naruto with a contented expression, since she was happy Naruto was having fun. Shikamaru was watching with a bored expression, but anyone who knew him well would know he was analyzing every single move in the bout. Choji was merrily eating out of a bag of chips, but he was also watching the bout and learning as well. Kiba let out a yawn and stretched while keeping an eye on the spar too.

"Troublesome...Naruto's obviously hiding his full potential, even from most of us, just so he'll have people underestimate him. What makes you think he was the only one in our class holding back?" Shikamaru drawled out as his eyes flickered between the two combatants.

"I could say the same about you, Shika! I wonder if you're actually fooling anyone anymore with that lazy-ass act." Ino shot back.

"What act?" the pineapple-haired boy retorted with a confused expression, making everyone but Ino chuckle as she growled in annoyance for a moment before she smirked.

"With the way you're bombing the exams on purpose lately, one would think you're desperately trying to be on the same team as Sasuke-san and Sakura-chan, with both of them currently top students and you as the current dead-last." Her smirk widened as she watched her long-time friend flinch in horror.

"Perhaps I should improve myself just a bit more." Shikamaru finally grumbled after a long moment of inwardly battling within himself on which was more troublesome; doing more work in class or being teamed with that arrogant ass. Sakura wasn't much of an issue for him lately as she seemed to have toned down her fangirl behavior and applied herself more seriously to physical training.

"Ano...Ino-chan, I've noticed you don't seem to be trying to be on the same team as Sasuke-san lately. Naruto-kun was kind enough to tell us about how they assign teams upon graduation and I thought you might make use of that information." Hinata commented. She noticed Ino's lack of interest in Sasuke as of late and that she dropped the 'kun' suffix. When they all enrolled into the academy four years ago, Ino was as much a fangirl as most other girls were but her interest seemed to have started declining a year ago or so. The pretty platinum blonde just shrugged.

"While I could compete with Sakura-chan for the top kunoichi spot, I'm making use of that information to avoid being placed with Sasuke-san since I know I'm better off with Shika and Choji as teammates. I guess I grew up a little and realized there are better choices out there. He's handsome and cool in some ways, but that's it. If I actually dated him I don't think I would have the patience to deal with his brooding after some time. It's not like I'm the only one doing this though. You're easily the strongest girl in this class. Hell, the second strongest behind Naruto." Ino smirked as she watched Hinata blush something fierce at her compliment.

"A-ano...you're putting too much stock in my skills, Ino-chan." Hinata murmured shyly as she poked her index fingers together and looked down. Ino snorted, not believing her friend, but decided to let it go for now as she had something to ask.

"I wonder about this...why didn't Naruto go for the rookie of the year? If both of you went for the top spots, it's a guarantee you would be teamed together."

"I would like that, but it doesn't seem possible. He doesn't care about that and I'm sure you've noticed by now how most people viewed him for most of his life." Hinata replied softly, sad for her secret love. Ino nodded sadly. She would have to be blind to not notice that. All of Naruto's friends saw his poor treatment at the hands of the villagers and some of the instructors but he avoided answering their questions directly.

"It's related to that, Ino-chan. He'll tell you all soon, so please be patient until then." Hinata added, still looking a little downcast. Ino smiled a little as she reached over and squeezed one of Hinata's hands for reassurance. They remained silent for a minute until Ino suddenly spoke up.

"Right now, I'm wondering how Naruto knew that particular bit of information about team assignments and why he had to be so infuriating about not telling us outright!" Ino grumbled while Hinata smiled.

"But he did tell us in his own way."

"You make it sound like it was an inside joke between you two." Ino quipped while Hinata had to work to hold back an unladylike snort of laughter. Ino had no idea how close she hit that nail on the head.

_Naruto-kun did tell us when he showed us that mischievous smirk and said it was inside information with emphasis on 'inside'. _

Hinata felt a little apprehensive about the fact Naruto had yet to tell any of his other friends about his tenant. She was fairly sure they would take the news well. In fact, they would be more upset that he held this secret from them for so long instead. That was still Naruto's secret to tell, but it didn't mean she was going to stand by and let this continue though. It was time for her to start making suggestions and encourage him to tell the others soon. Hopefully all of this would be resolved before graduation in eight months.

"I wish they would hurry up and finish this. I feel like another round." Kiba's impatient voice and his dog's accompanying barks snapped Hinata out of her thoughts as she absentmindedly watched her future lover and the insect user still going at it strong. She thought back to how the abrasive heir to the Inuzuka clan joined this sparring and study group a few months ago. Kiba was stubbornly making a nemesis out of Naruto for 'infringing' on his self-claimed position as the alpha. Unfortunately for him, Naruto already established himself as the 'true alpha' not just in his year, but in the entire academy, including the chunin instructors, without even knowing or trying. Kiba, in his refusal to accept his instincts and his partner's increasingly frustrated advising, endured years of humbling losses to Naruto in spars and other competitions before he swallowed his pride and asked to train with the group in order to improve himself. He hadn't looked back since. Hinata knew Kiba would never admit this but he was grateful to Naruto and the others for welcoming him into the group with big smiles. Shino's admission into the group was at around the same time as Kiba's and much simpler. He saw the logic of improving his skills with the group and just asked outright.

The sound of a fist striking flesh followed by a grunt of pain brought Hinata out of her thoughts completely as she focused on the spar, only to be surprised to see Naruto sprawled out on the ground with Shino standing tall over him, displaying some surprise on his face as well. A glance to both sides revealed confused expressions from the other spectators, so she wasn't the only one. They all stood to walk over to Naruto, who was sitting up cross-legged and rubbing a bruise on his cheek. Shino's expression changed from barely visible surprise to barely visible scowl.

"Naruto-san, while I firmly believe my taijutsu to be adequate at this point, I do know you're holding your abilities back to allow us to improve ourselves faster. It would not be training if we lose to you within seconds each spar. However, to play at losing seems...insulting." Shino's even tone was laced with a hint of being offended.

"Sorry, Shino. I never intended for anyone to feel that way. It's true I'm holding myself back but I really did lose to you this time." Naruto replied with no hint of lying as he brought himself to his feet. That set off a wave of confusion through everyone assembled around him until Shikamaru broke the silence.

"Troublesome...you're using a seal." he said this as if it was a sure thing. Naruto smirked while the others looked at the pineapple-haired boy in surprise.

"Leave it to you to figure it out already, Shika."

"Watching you sparring just now compared to before, there was a difference in how you held yourself. In the past, you had to make a measured effort to hold back for our sake. We may not like that but it was necessary for training if we're going to eventually reach your level in the future. This time, you seemed to genuinely struggle a little, as if you were handicapped one way or another. Therefore, your statement confirmed it was most likely seals. Gravity or resistance seal, I'm guessing." Shikamaru concluded in his usual bored tone. Naruto nodded in confirmation of his friend's deduction.

"Seal?" I don't see any on him." Ino pointed out in confusion.

"That's because it's not visible. Most seals painted on skin usually hide themselves after they were activated." Naruto replied for his fellow blonde.

"May we observe it?" Shino asked the question that was on everyone's mind.

"Sure...if the pretty ladies present doesn't mind since I have to take my shirt off." Naruto said with a foxy grin. Hinata and Ino blushed at the idea of seeing him topless but nodded their consent. A moment later, Naruto's shirt was discarded on the ground much to the red-faced girls' hidden delight as their eyes took in the pleasant sight of Naruto's lean but muscular torso shining with sweat under the bright sun. He was just starting to form a six-pack already, a good sign of his body growing up and gaining more muscle mass.

"Better choices out there, indeed." Ino muttered quietly to Hinata with a saucy smirk. Hinata knew Ino was teasing her but it still irritated her when she was reminded that other girls would begin to look at Naruto with lust soon enough. However, she was surprised when an image of Ino kissing Naruto deeply flashing through her mind didn't automatically make her growl and get possessive of Naruto. In fact, it made her a little curious, and a little heated, to watch her secret love make her friend feel good in front of her. Imaging him with a civilian girl she only saw once made her insides flare up in rage, so it wasn't just any random girl, but when she imagined him with a girl she and Naruto personally knew well, like Ino, it made her very curious. It was like she was sharing a secret but incredible joy with only a select few. Even now when Ino was clearly ogling Naruto's muscles, Hinata didn't feel threatened at all. She dwelled on this confusing emotion while Naruto turned his back to the crowd and channeled some chakra to his back.

"I came across this little piece of work in one of the books Ero-sennin lent me and figured it would be a good way to handicap and train myself at the same time. This way, I'd have some fun training with you guys. I mean no offense but I actually was getting bored having to consciously hold myself back." Naruto explained as an intricate seal matrix shaped like a pentagon, with a thick dot at each of the five corners, faded into existence, covering almost all of his back. Thick black lines connected to the two dots on the seal's left side were drawn around his body. One snaked its way up over his shoulder then followed a winding path down his left arm before ending with another black dot on his wrist. The other snaked its way once around the torso before going straight down his left leg to end at the calf. If the other three dots were active, there would have been five thick lines drawn all over his body, as if they were actively trying to slow him down. Shikamaru frowned.

"Oi, you're already at level two. Just how long have you had this seal?"

"Um..since last week?" Naruto's unsure reply caused Shikamaru's jaw to drop in shock.

"What's going on? It's rare for us to see you like that, Shikamaru." Kiba piped in as he continued to look over the odd artwork on Naruto's back. The girls continued to blush as they watched some of the muscles in his well-toned back shift and flex whenever Naruto moved his head and arms around a little. Hinata was peeking adorably between the fingers on her hands covering her red face and Ino was trying, and failing, to keep up an uninterested expression as her pale blue eyes hungrily took in every detail she could. Shino and Choji watched and chewed in silence respectively.

"You're telling me you skipped over level one already?" Shikamaru demanded with a twitching eyebrow.

"That didn't do anything so I just went on to level two to actually feel some resistance. Thanks to the sadistic teachers I have, I guess." Naruto shrugged as if this was no big deal. The Nara clan heir slapped a hand to his forehead in frustration and actually growled aloud, much to everyone's surprise.

"Damn it! Every time I think I have you figured out, you just blow everything to hell and I have to start over!" he ranted at a sheepish Naruto. He exhaled slowly then calmed himself down after a moment and decided to elaborate for his confused friends, although one of his eyebrows was still twitching.

"Troublesome...this is what we call a resistance seal. It increases resistance a person's body encounters through the air as if it grew thick enough that it's difficult to move around properly, let alone train. It increases strength, speed, and agility all at once as you do simple everyday things and exercises and it continually improves every muscle you use without even thinking about it. Compared to gravity seals, a resistance seal takes longer to train with but promises a well-balanced body in the end. Gravity seals provide faster results but they're usually localized on limbs and too harsh on a growing body." the genius of the group lectured to his captivated audience; even Naruto was listening intently.

"Resistance level one would feel like you're trying to wade through water at a run. If one was to suddenly jump to level two from zero, it would feel like moving through very thick mud. The top level, which is five, would feel like you're trying to walk through a concrete wall. Naruto is implying he's so used to level one he's getting around like normal so he's moved on to the next level already. It'll be a while before he reaches level three though, since getting to the next level increasingly takes longer each time. If he was to deactivate the seal in battle, his speed and strength would look like they shot up exponentially." he concluded to the stunned audience.

"During my spar with Shino just now, it feels like my entire body was moving a half-second behind my mind so it's taking more effort to make sure most of his attacks didn't go through. I also had to carefully plan out my strikes to not waste my energy doing useless things like I would have at full power." Naruto supplied as he picked up his t-shirt, not noticing the slightly disappointed expression on the girls' faces as they thought the show was over too quickly. The boys nodded as they processed what they learned.

"Ano...would it be possible to put this on any of us?" Hinata asked shyly. However, Naruto suddenly blushed bright red and his body became jerky as he was tugging his shirt back on. He became so distracted he slipped an arm into the wrong hole and nearly tripped over his own feet fighting his shirt before his head and arms finally found the right holes. He still didn't look the girls in the eyes though. The girls wondered what was wrong with the usually confident and sure-footed Naruto. Shikamaru chuckled, as if he knew an inside joke this time.

"If he drew this on himself, he can put it on others as well. However, I think you'd probably balk at what's involved in the process of drawing the seal. It's fine with us boys, though." Shikamaru answered for the suddenly bashful Naruto with a smirk.

"What's wrong with us girls?" Ino demanded with a confused frown. However, Hinata seemed to have realized the problem and she completely covered her face with both hands and a squeak of 'Eep!' escaped from underneath.

"Y-y-you'd have to be completely topless for me to be able to draw the seal on your back without any obstacle." Naruto finally answered much to the girls' embarrassment. Kiba and Choji blushed at the image while Shino continued to look stoic but even he couldn't resist a slight tinge of red on his cheeks as well. Shikamaru chuckled at the scene, much to Ino's irritation before she cleared her throat.

"Uh...I guess I'll have to pass on that for now." Ino murmured demurely, her red cheeks a stark contrast to her pale skin. Hinata's dark red blush extended all the way down her neck into her light-blue overcoat. However, for some reason, she suddenly had a shot of courage and decided to let a little of it out.

"I wouldn't mind...if it's you, Naruto-kun." Hinata whispered so quietly behind her hands that almost no one heard her, except for Naruto with his advanced hearing. That was her intention, however. His wide eyes snapped to her in an instant and was surprised to see Hinata slowly remove her hands, revealing a resolute expression as she stared back at him. Her blush was still showing but her pale lavender-tinted eyes were unwavering and seemed hopeful, as if she was daring him to come upon an answer he didn't know he was searching for. Did she know he may have heard her? He spent a moment trying to decide if he was just imagining this or not before he was interrupted by Kiba excitedly asking to have the seal drawn on him. Shino was right behind him asking in his usual stoic and logical manner.

Looking back at Hinata, he saw that she was now talking and giggling with Ino, although a small blush was still visible on her cheeks. Naruto decided to put aside his confusion for the moment as he shifted his attention to other things. However, his mind lingered a little on the image of him carefully drawing the seal on Hinata's soft and smooth back while she was topless and he had to admit it was a pleasing thought and he liked it a lot. Would he be able to continue seeing her as just friend forever? Did he want to?

Inside Naruto's _other_ seal, the great demon fox, Kurama, grinned wide in triumph, having heard her tenant's thoughts just now. A crack in his incredible denseness was finally forming and this day couldn't have come soon enough.

**A couple hours later on the way back to the village**

Naruto's mind was still dwelling on what Hinata whispered to him about drawing the seal upon her. Did she really mean that? Maybe she only said that because she trusted him, like a best friend should. However, the way she said it and that look in her eyes afterward made him think otherwise. She was a beautiful and kind girl and Naruto would have to be a blind fool not to see that. However, he always thought they would be nothing more than friends for now since Hinata hadn't said anything or made any aggressive move toward the idea of developing a romance between them. Now that he was watching for any hidden intent from her since Kurama's heavy-handed hinting last month, he suddenly noticed the secret ways she was looking at him, the beautiful smile she displayed when he was happy or excited over something, the glares she sent toward some girls that looked at him in a weird way, and the way her eyes and smile still lit up the day even after years of commenting on how good her bentos were. After seeing all that, something told him she was looking for more from their relationship. Now he had to ask himself...did he read the signals correctly and did he want to move on to romance with Hinata in the near future?

"Ano...not that I mind, but you're staring at me when we should be looking ahead, Naruto-kun." a familiar shy but slightly teasing voice broke Naruto out of his thoughts and his eyes came into focus upon Hinata's blushing face. Her slightly pink lips curved upward into a small smile as if she was secretly happy about something and her half-lidded gaze shifted to the ground in front of her. The blonde had to force himself to break away from her beautiful visage to look around and see that he was walking on automatic with Hinata back to her clan's compound. He blushed upon being caught staring at her but Hinata didn't seem to mind at all.

_Oh Kami YES! Finally! He's looking at me differently compared to the way he looked at me as a friend countless times before! Kami-sama and whoever else's up there, please...PlEASE let the day Naruto-kun sees how much I'm in love with him come soon! _Hinata was praying hard in her mind as her eyes burned holes in the back of Naruto's head as if trying to send him a message. They walked in what seemed to be increasingly tense silence until Hinata broke it.

"Ano..." she tried to say before blushing and shifting her gaze downward again. She was nervous about something.

"You want something, Hinata-chan?" Naruto hoped whatever Hinata had to say would move this tense silence to a more lighter atmosphere.

"Naruto-kun...I-I-I..."

"Yes?"

"Please draw the resistance seal on me!" Hinata finally got out after hesitating many times with a dark red blush continually growing on her face the entire time. Naruto's hope for a lighter conversation was shattered as he stopped and stood rooted to the spot while Hinata stopped as well with her eyes closed in embarrassment but she stood firm.

"H-h-hinata-chan! Do you know what you're saying?!" Naruto frantically shouted as his arms flailed around. Hinata kept her eyes closed but nodded firmly, her long indigo hair whipping around from the force.

"I'm not sure you heard me back there, but you'll have to be topless! You'd be able to cover up your front but I would still see a lot more of you than we're used to." Naruto tried to give her a way out. This was going too fast for him! He was starting to see her as a growing girl and now he was about to see a lot of her than he was comfortable with. Any more Naruto had to say died in his throat when Hinata opened her pale eyes and looked straight into his wide blue eyes and seemed to ensnare him with her determined stare.

"I trust you completely, Naruto-kun. You have no idea how utterly sure I am that you won't ever hurt me intentionally." Hinata proclaimed with such force in her voice that let Naruto know immediately he wasn't able to doubt her sincerity in this. He was happy and flattered at the absolute faith she had in him. It also made him terrified of hurting her even accidentally. Naruto fidgeted for a moment trying to come up with another reason.

_**Oi! Do this or I will test the theory on if you can die for real or not when I rip apart your astral body in our mindscape...repeatedly! **_Kurama growled from inside.

_Would you really do that? You know the seal will prevent any true killing intent from you and it'll hurt like a bitch._

_**I'm willing to push that boundary if I have to. Now say that three-letter word that begins with a 'y' and ends with 's' or I'll be USING YOUR BONES TO PICK MY TEETH! **_ the fox roared loud enough it actually rattled the mindscape. Naruto winced a little before sighing in defeat.

"Ok, yes. I have no problem doing this for you." Naruto finally said before he was engulfed by Hinata in a bone-crushing hug.

"Thank you! I'm happy to hear that. When should I come over to get this done?" she excitedly asked as she stepped back, a hopeful expression on her face. Naruto had to chuckle at his friend's (or was it more than friend?) excitement.

"When I discussed this with the guys, we decided this coming Friday would be the best time since they would have the weekend to get used to the seal before class on Monday. I made time for them in the afternoon after class that day, though. You should wait till later that evening if you want the privacy. At least you have the weekend to get used to the seal and hopefully it won't affect your everyday performance too much." he explained while Hinata agreed with the logic of this arrangement.

"Ano...Ino-chan might be interested in getting this as well. I think she only declined because it was in front of too many people. Would it be okay if I invite her along as well? I know she trusts you too." she added. She figured Naruto might be more comfortable with her if there was another person there, despite the fact Ino would be going topless as well. Naruto almost balked at the thought of drawing on two soft and delicate-looking backs instead of just one like he imagined in his original erotic thought. However, he shook it off.

"If she wants to come, it's fine."

Hinata nodded with a smile and they resumed their walk on the trail through the thick forest between the village and the training ground. After a moment, Naruto's expression darkened suddenly.

_**Did you feel that? That annoying fucker is back. **_Kurama growled, her brief good mood at seeing Naruto making progress with Hinata ruined by a presence she was used to sensing over the past few weeks.

_I know. I was fine with this if it's just me he's spying on. Now that Hinata-chan's here, the situation's changed and I'm going to teach that bastard a lesson. _

_**Chase him down like the pathetic lapdog he is and put the fear of the Kyuubi in him! **_Kurama cackled uproariously, finally excited for a little bit of action.

"Naruto-kun..." Hinata's whisper trailed off. She had just noticed Naruto's distress and discretely activated her Byakugan to find a familiar figure hiding up in one of the trees about fifty meters behind them off to the right.

"Can you wait here for a few minutes, Hinata-chan? He's been tailing me for weeks but this is the first time he's spying on me with one of my friends. I'm not going to stand for that. I will not have anyone else, especially you, get involved." Naruto whispered darkly. Hinata smiled slightly at his fierce protectiveness of her for a moment before she became concerned.

"Naruto-kun...he's someone we know. I'm not going to stop you but please try not to hurt him too much."

Naruto nodded before he stopped completely and tensed his body as his turned his head slightly, one eye locking onto where his follower was. The spy immediately realized he was made and jumped into full retreat deeper into the forest. The suddenly feral-looking blonde then fully turned around with a loud hair-raising snarl, his elongated fangs bared in full display and his blue eyes shifting to glowing red. Seeing his almost animalistic display of protectiveness over her sent a strange but pleasant wave of heat throughout Hinata's body that made her knees buck a little. When she snapped out of her brief wide-eyed daze, Naruto was already speeding toward the spy and he was swallowed by the thick foliage. It would be nearly impossible for the spy to lose Naruto now thanks to his sensitive nose and ears.

Hinata wobbled a little over to a nearby tree just off the trail and carefully sat down against it. She then instinctively rubbed her thighs together a few times and, suddenly, all of her being became completely focused on the waves of a new tingling sensation coming from between her legs that traveled all the way up the spine into the very roots of her hair, making her gasp and almost moan aloud. She silently thanked her caretaker, Tomoe, for the embarrassing, but extremely informative, talk not too long ago when she started on the path to womanhood with her menarche. Because of what she learned from Tomoe, and the academy's standard sex education lesson as well, she wasn't confused about this new but pleasant sensation since she now understood she was very aroused.

_More importantly, it was Naruto-kun that caused this and he didn't even __intend__ it! I wonder what'll happen if he actually looked at me with want in his eyes? _ Hinata thought and she had to quickly stop picturing Naruto's beautiful blue eyes darkening slightly with wanton lust and love. Otherwise, she would have forgotten her surroundings and just let her hands do what they were itching to do for the past few minutes. Instead, she wondered if she was going to have to get privacy from her father and Hanabi later this evening to try what Tomoe taught her about masturbation. For now, Hinata just let the tingling fade away slowly, leaving behind a warmth that spread slowly through her and she quietly enjoyed it with a content smile as she waited for Naruto.

**In the forest**

_He shouldn't have been able to detect me. __He also somehow managed to make me lose my brush and ink in here as well._ Sai thought calmly as he hid inside a nook of a large tree after escaping deep into the forest. He had just noticed Naruto managed to rip the satchel containing his art supplies off his waist during his escape. It was a close call because he was feeling Naruto breathing down his neck for a few minutes before he managed to lose his pursuer with a few smoke bombs and basic traps. As he took a moment to rest from the quick but intense pursuit, he worked over what happened for him to be found out only to realize there was nothing he did wrong. Therefore, his target found him out of his own accord. The only question left was, how long had Naruto known he was being tailed?

As the spy tried to bring his heavy breathing under control and think over his observations of Naruto, the regular noises of the forest all ceased completely. He jerked his head up at the lack of sound and actually felt a small shiver go down his spine. Suddenly, a loud growl from his left made his heart leap into his throat as he instinctively rolled forward into a tight ball, barely avoiding a clawed hand swiping at his head. In the next instant, he heard something crack loudly. As he shot out of the roll into a ready stance, he spared a glance behind to see a hand-sized hole in the tree he was hiding in. The person responsible was nowhere to be seen. As the spy's body froze for an instant with indecision due to his inability to see his attacker at the moment, his head jerked upward when he heard another growl from above and was momentarily shocked to see an orange-clad Naruto descend on him, his face set in an angry snarl and his clawed hands aimed right for the face.

"SAI!" he roared as he landed on nothing but grass when Sai rolled out of the way again. The black-clad Root agent kept an emotionless gaze on Naruto as the blonde dashed forward on all four with abandon, his clawed hands swiping at him like an furious leopard. Sai barely kept out of the reach as he scrambled backward over fallen tree limbs and giant roots for what felt like the longest minute in his life, keeping his black eyes focused on Naruto's clawed hands. The blonde's swipes were getting more accurate and seemed to be focused on slashing at his prey's vitals now. Finally, an unexpected slash ripped through Sai's shirt in the stomach and he wondered how he managed to avoid having his guts spill out onto the forest ground as his pale stomach became visible and remained unblemished for now. After a few more seconds of avoiding slashes from everywhere, his back hit against a thin tree leaning at a forty-five degree angle away from him. Seeing no other direction he could go in front of Naruto's ferocious charge, Sai acrobatically somersaulted up and backward out of one of Naruto's slashes and onto the tree to continue scrambling backward up the tree with chakra, keeping an intense gaze on his pursuer at the bottom of the tree. He was confused when Naruto didn't go up the tree after him and he was smirking. With a growl of exertion, he raised his right arm to slash at the base of the thin tree. Sai's eyes widened in shock when the tree was actually lopped off its stump with a loud crack. With the tree now free to fall, Sai let out a surprised yelp as he was brought down and landed hard on his feet. Unable to deal with the sudden shock of a landing like that, Sai was slow to move while Naruto quickly charged at him again with another loud snarl, an arm raised for a strike.

Sai was actually getting nervous at the look on his target's face. It implied he was going to be ripped apart if he was caught. Deciding to forget his orders on not attacking Naruto in order to preserve himself, Sai unsheathed his tanto from his back quickly and lashed out with precision at Naruto's throat, expecting to force him back. He was actually surprised to see the neck slice open and the shocked look in Naruto's eyes. That was for an instant before the blonde exploded into smoke revealing a piece of wood. Sai was so taken aback by the successful **Kawarimi** that he didn't even see the real Naruto coming at him from the side and, with a loud roar, slammed a hand onto his throat, forcefully pushing him back until his back hit a tree painfully. Sai grunted and coughed in pain but was already preparing to cut at the arm holding him up with his tanto before he stopped when his eyes locked onto Naruto's angry glare. The blonde reared his free clawed hand back to swipe at his captured prey's face.

Sai's breath hitched as he experienced something he hadn't felt since his training in Root; fear. Naruto saw the flicker of emotion in Sai's eyes and he stayed his hand for the moment. He snarled once more before smirking. His glowing red eyes shifted back to their natural blue, but he tightened his hold on Sai's throat and pinned him high enough against the tree so only his toes barely touched the ground. Sai's face contorted in discomfort but didn't say anything even as his breathing was somewhat restricted. He was planning to swipe at Naruto with his tanto to get free but something stayed his left hand for some reason. Naruto's smirk was still on his face as he seemed to look over Sai's expressionless face with curiosity.

"So...this puppet can feel a little. Tell me, how do you get around with a hand shoved so far up your asshole and controlling you from within?"

"Your insults will not work on me. I am curious how someone as dickless as you was able to detect me tailing you, though." Sai spoke as if he was talking about the weather, his empty black eyes boring into Naruto's. The blonde laughed menacingly.

"You think I'm going to let you take that kind of information back to that old fossil? I've known about you ever since you started tailing me. I've been the model citizen during all that time, haven't I? Nothing out of place about me, I assume? No new information on my abilities, correct?" Naruto's smirk widened when he saw Sai's eyes flash with some irritation at his lost time spying since any information he may have gotten were all irrelevant now.

"You know about my master."

"Of course. It's hard not to when Jiji-san vaguely warned me about him and I was too curious to ignore this. I just asked for information from someone else one day and got a lot more than I expected."

"Who told you?" Sai fished, knowing Danzo would want this source eliminated. He grimaced when Naruto tightened his hand around the throat some more, cutting off the air for the moment.

"Ah-ah-ah. I'm the one holding your life in my hands, not you. You don't get to ask questions here." Naruto chided with a waggling finger as if he was talking to a toddler before loosening his hold enough to let in air again. Sai just remained silent.

"I don't care about getting any information out of you because I know that's a waste of time." To prove it, Naruto forcefully grabbed Sai's cheeks with his free hand and squeezed painfully hard, forcing the mouth open to expose an odd-looking seal on the tongue.

"Huh. There's the binding seal. Just like my informant said." Naruto observed offhandedly for a second before releasing Sai's cheeks and moving on.

"Instead, I'm going to talk by myself here for a minute. I have to admit I was a bit curious about you since you suddenly joined our class at the beginning of this year. That was unusual enough by itself. Then I noticed your emotionless persona and I just immediately knew you're with Root. If you were trying to be discrete, that didn't work. Just thought you'd know. As a somewhat famous prankster who manages to prank the entire ANBU regularly wearing all orange, my opinion on discretion probably holds a lot of sway with some people." Naruto added as an aside while Sai continued to stare at him blankly.

"I assumed the reason you were inserted into the class was either because of the Uchiha, prince of the assholes, or me, the friendly neighborhood jinchuuriki. When I noticed you following me, it answered that question since I was wondering when ol' Danzo was going to try something with me. I figured it was well past time that flaccid old cripple-" he was stopped by a flash of anger in Sai's eyes before the Root agent swung his tanto with all his effort at Naruto's neck. The calm blonde was expecting it as he caught his left arm by the forearm easily and, with no warning to Sai, squeezed it hard enough to snap both the radius and ulna bones. Sai allowed a grunt of pain as his now useless arm dropped the tanto, but he still kept his smoldering glare fixed on Naruto's cool gaze.

"Ah..anger is something else this puppet feels too. Don't worry, I made sure they were clean breaks. They'll heal quickly when you go to a medic later. Now, before I was rudely interrupted..." Naruto paused for a moment with a raised eyebrow before continuing. "It was well past time that flaccid old cripple was starting to get interested in my business because I'm the big scary jinchuuriki he can't control. As much as I'd like to run to Jiji-san and tattle on this old fossil, I figured if I just acted normal, he'd lose interest and move on to annoy other people with his little secret club." Naruto spoke easily but Sai felt some pressure in the air building up around the two of them. His eyes changed from anger to uncertainty. A bead of sweat went down his right temple as he watched Naruto close his eyes for a moment before opening to reveal glowing red eyes and his blackening lips pulled back to bare his fangs. Sai saw some red chakra begin to form a shape behind Naruto and it looked like a large fox head grinning sinisterly.

"**However, it all changed ****when ****you ****were watching**** me with my friends ****today****. That ****went beyond**** unacceptable!**** I was perfectly fine letting you see what I'm allowing ****you to see**** as long it was just me. ****W****hen ****you ****got**** someone else ****involved...****ALL**** BETS ARE OFF!" **Naruto roared into Sai's face, making him shiver involuntarily despite his emotional training. The fox's head made of red chakra grinned wider as if it sensed a weakness before it opened its large maw, revealing sharp teeth, and it snapped at his face repeatedly as if preparing to chew it off. With each snap of its jaw, the chakra's terrible presence increased, pressing down on every single inch of Sai's body. His eyes were wide with terror and he felt like he was going to suffocate under the combination of Naruto's anger and the chakra's pressure. He couldn't help it when his entire body started to tremble and his breaths were coming short and hard.

"**This has gone on long enough. You're lucky that if I left your body rotting here, it would create a hassle for me, especially when I'm going to graduate soon. Instead, I'm going to leave you here with these broken bones as reminder that your little spy game is over. Tell that senile old fool that if I ever catch you or anyone else spying on even a pebble in my presence again, I will gladly deposit the bodies in front of the Hokage Tower in broad daylight for all to see with 'Return to Shimura Danzo' clearly written on them. I doubt he would like that." **Naruto growled before his feral features slowly retracted and the red chakra disappeared instantly. He suddenly slammed the Root agent's head against the tree to make his point, making Sai's vision explode with stars. The blonde released his hold and Sai sank to his knees coughing with his usable hand clutching at his abused throat and he was fighting back the lull of unconsciousness. Naruto took a torn satchel, which contained some art supplies and a small book, out of his jacket, silently dropped it with a light thump, and gave the still-trembling Sai one last glare before he turned around and started walking away.

"Remember this...I had no reason to leave you alive, let alone even return that worn book that's apparently important to you. You should also thank Hinata-chan for the fact the rest of your bones aren't broken like your forearm. You just came close to death in an ill-advised spying mission that failed from the very onset. Think about that and your choice in bosses." Naruto's calm voice carried out into the air before he stepped into the thick foliage, back toward Hinata. Sai watched his retreating back until he was no more. Now alone, he let out a piteous whimper as he reached for the satchel and dragged it in to hug it tightly to his chest. He then drew himself into a fetal position, trembling at how he barely survived his close-up view of the devil.

**A few minutes later...**

"Naruto-kun!" Hinata called out as she stood up from the tree, desperately hiding how hard it was for her to keep standing with her legs still feeling a little like jelly from her previous sensations. Naruto smiled brightly and waved as he came into view from out of the forest.

"Was everything ok while I was gone?" Naruto nonchalantly asked, not noticing the blush on Hinata's face as she remembered what she was thinking about over the past fifteen minutes.

"E-everything's fine! I hope you didn't hurt Sai-san too much." Hinata tried to direct the conversation to a new subject as they started walking toward the village again.

"Nothing a medic couldn't fix. I think he knows to stay away now, though." Naruto happily said, ignoring the exasperated sigh from Hinata.

"Naruutoo-kuun..." she dragged out warningly as she started to bring up her patented glare. Naruto quickly backed up and brought his hands up defensively.

"Whoa! I held back, ok? I wanted to do a lot more to him. He should be happy he made off with a couple broken bones that medics can fix in almost an instant, and that was only because he tried to attack me even when he was at a complete disadvantage."

Hinata let out a defeated sigh and decided that was good enough for now. They resumed walking again in silence for a moment before Naruto broke the silence.

"Hinata-chan."

"Yes, Naruto-kun?"

"What's that smell? It smells like-"

"Ahh! I just remembered! I'm late for training with Father and I have to run ahead! Bye!" Hinata's panicked voice was already fading toward the village as she left a stunned Naruto in the dust.

"Why did this remind me of the reactions from Yugao-san and Anko-chan from back then?" he finally asked no one in particular. Kurama kept silent as she struggled with everything she had to not laugh uproariously at Naruto's confusion.

**Later that evening in an unknown location**

The tension in the dark and barren office was thick enough to cut with a sword as Sai, his left arm encased in a brace for the mending bones, silently awaited his master's reaction. He had just relayed everything that happened in the forest and now Danzo was staring down at his pawn with his one cold eye.

"This is most...distressing." he finally said after a few minutes of considering what Sai had to report. He did not like how Uzumaki Naruto had been acting lately and now this little shit has made a mockery of him and his entire organization with his actions and words. He also learned that Naruto may not necessarily put this village's security above his personal friends' safety if they didn't correspond with each other. The Root leader frowned in frustration as he was reminded again of Sarutobi Hiruzen's constant refusal to have Naruto trained as an emotionless weapon unable to go against Konohagakure. He knew the jinchuuriki was training himself and that one of his senseis was Jiraiya, a student of Hiruzen that also advocates that blasted philosophy of peace. Beyond this, he didn't have enough information and that was unacceptable to him. Feeling like this was getting out of his control, he made a decision.

Sai, watching the slight twitching of muscles on his master's face, easily deduced his master was about to make a knee-jerk reaction to his growing inability to keep the jinchuuriki under his personal control. He had an hunch this was going to end badly for everyone involved. However, he was not trained to trust his hunches and who was he to countermand his master's teachings? The fact that Naruto had given him a lot to think about would have to wait for another time.

"You're dismissed. We will discuss your failure later." Danzo said coldly as he watched Sai silently nod his head in acknowledgement and vanished from sight. The grizzled old man then took out a blank scroll and wrote down some information for someone that would be very interested in the recent development. If he couldn't have his weapon, then he wanted it out of Konoha at least. Having no weapon was better than having one that could turn around and aim in your direction, in his opinion.

**Friday evening at Yamanaka Flowers**

The bell above the store's front door chimed and Ino looked up from the counter to see her friend, Hinata, walk in. They smiled happily upon seeing each other. Ino was wearing normal civilian clothes; a purple t-shirt, white capri pants, and white civilian sandals. Hinata wore her usual overcoat, but under it was a simple black t-shirt, a pair of black pants, and her black ninja sandals.

"Welcome to this humble and undeserving establishment. How may I help you, Lady Hyuuga?" Ino jokingly simpered like a saleswoman. Hinata giggled at the silliness.

"Are you about to get off work, Ino-chan?"

"Not just yet..." Ino muttered as she looked up at the clock which just struck six. "...aaaannd now I'm off. I have to close up though so I'll need to do that then let mom and dad know where I'm going." Ino said as she hopped over to the front door then flipped the sign to 'Closed' and grabbed a broom from a nearby nook.

"Ano...actually, I want to buy something from this shop to take to Naruto-kun's. I intend for it to be a thank-you present from us for drawing the seals on us. I also would like it to serve a second, but more important, purpose." Hinata explained, putting her quiet intelligence to work. Ino raised an eyebrow at her friend while she was sweeping the floor.

"Since it's also a present from me too, it's only fair you don't pay for it. I mean, we run a large store. One pot of anything isn't going to be missed." Ino offered. Hinata was about to protest this but decided to let Ino have this one since she knew more about plants and how this store was run.

"So what's the second purpose?" Ino queried as she moved on to sprinkling the plants with some water to tide them over for the night.

"Ano..it needs to have a pleasant fragrance strong enough to fill a living room but gentle on Naruto-kun's sensitive nose. It should be something that's easy to take care of and it can go without water for some time. It also should be visually appealing enough to Naruto-kun for him to keep it around in the living room and nowhere else in his apartment." Hinata listed out her ideal plant. Ino put the sprinkler away and struck a thoughtful pose.

"I know of a few species that fits what you want and the good news is that we have an overstock on one of them. We were going to have to get rid of some to free up space so this solves that problem since it's not going to be missed at all." Ino exclaimed, happy at this being an easy enough request to fulfill.

"Now that I'm done cleaning, I'll need to do some quick potting in the back to prepare the plant for Naruto's place. It'll only take a minute if you don't mind." Ino offered, to which Hinata nodded enthusiastically. She was looking forward to seeing what Ino came up with. After a few minutes of working and slipping into the attached house to quickly clean herself up and inform her parents where she was going, the platinum blonde came back out into the shop carrying a medium sized pot with three long wooden stakes stuck straight into the fertilizer that rose three feet into the air. At the base of each of the stakes were two beautiful violet flowers formed into several tightly clustered racemes hanging upside-down. Hinata were in awe of their beauty and then the fragrance hit her nose. The scent was somewhat strong but not too sweet or spicy, and it reminded her of the aftermath of a summer rainstorm. She knew immediately this was a good choice.

"Ino-chan! I just know Naruto-kun would love this. As always, you're great with flowers." Hinata praised excitedly while Ino ducked her head in embarrassment.

"These are called wisteria. It's easy to take care of and can survive on little water. I'm sure you also noticed it smells great. Naruto will have to watch these little troublemakers though as they like to grow fast and they try to crawl up the nearest vertical surface which is why I have the stakes set up."

"This is perfect. It'll do the job nicely."

"I'm getting the feeling this is more for our benefits than Naruto's. Spit out out. What aren't you telling me, Hinata-chan?" Ino looked at her friend with some suspicion. Hinata chuckled nervously and considered what to say to the blonde.

"If you're ready, I'll tell you on the way." And with that, the girls left the store with a pot of wisteria in tow.

"Ok, Ino-chan. You know we're going over to Naruto-kun's to have the seal painted on us." Hinata said with a blush. Ino blushed at the implications of that activity as well.

"Ano...and you've always known how much I love Naruto-kun." Hinata murmured shyly and Ino smiled, happy she was trusted with that information long ago.

"Of course."

"Lastly, our bodies are now changing and we're feeling some new things."

"Right?" Ino's unsure reply didn't surprise Hinata as this was a tangent no one was expecting.

"Ano...this is embarrassing but I trust you not to tell anyone else. I've started...imagining myself with Naruto-kun in various ways."

"Y-y-you mean like k-k-kissing and stuff?" Ino stuttered, not expecting this topic at all.

"And more than that." Hinata's frank admission was enough to send the blonde's imagination into overdrive and she blushed at the images.

"I see. I'll admit I've been having some thoughts like that sometimes. I still don't see what this has to do with the wisteria."

"We're going to see Naruto-kun in a private setting. I'm going to show my bare back to him. I'm going to feel a little thrill when I wonder if I would accidentally flash him somehow at some point. Then he's going to be touching gently and carefully all over my skin with these calloused hands of his as he draws the seal. Do you understand where I'm coming from?" Hinata painted the likely scenario, her cheeks flaming red as she imagined it all being done to her. She knew Ino got it as she watched her friend's pale skin turn bight red as well.

"Yes, I'm going to be incredibly aroused and it will be frustrating when I can't act on it until the next time I'm alone." she added. Ino kept her gaze on the ground as her head continued to look like a tomato. She was now feeling some heat spread through her body as she imagined the scenario Hinata described...only she was taking her friend's place.

"Naruto-kun has a sensitive nose and I've discovered recently he's able to easily smell arousal coming from any female. That's why I wanted the wisteria. It'll likely be the dominant scent in the room and Naruto-kun won't focus too much on the _other _scent." Hinata finally got to the point of her little plan. Ino looked over at her friend in shock, her heated imagination forgotten.

"You know all this and you're still going through with this?"

"I want the resistance seal and I trust only him to draw any seal on any part of my body. No one else. If everything goes right in the future, we'll be dating and I won't mind him knowing how much he turns me on. But, right now, it's just a little embarrassing and I wanted to avoid having Naruto-kun catch on for a while longer. It's okay if you want to back out. I wouldn't blame you."

"W-w-what?! Hinata-chan, what makes you think I would get excited by Naruto!? It's going to be completely professional between us tonight!" Ino declared, though Hinata saw uncertainty in her eyes and smiled at her friend's denial. Ino knew Hinata didn't believe her. Even she didn't believe herself either, dammit! She was beginning to see him less like a goofy runt of a brother she met when they were five and more like a growing man that had a lot of what she was going to want in her future boyfriend. As she was dwelling on that thought, a jolt shot through her spine suddenly and she howled in shock in the middle of a street that was empty by chance. After gritting through a violent shudder and looking around to see if anyone else saw her sudden outburst, she glared at a smirking Hinata removing a single finger from running it down her friend's spine lightly.

"You're very sensitive to touch, Ino-chan. I'm jealous; you'll be enjoying tonight a lot more than I'm going to." she remarked with a light tone and a giggle. Ino narrowed her eyes.

"You know, sometimes I wonder if the world is ready for a mischievous and confident Hyuuga Hinata. I don't understand why you're only this way with me and Hanabi-chan. It's not like Naruto's going to hate you if you're like this around him." Ino wondered. Hinata blushed at the mention of his name.

"I don't know...I just feel shy around him. I can't explain it." she struggled with her answer just as the girls reached the entrance to Naruto's apartment building. Both girls let out a sigh at the same time.

"Ready?" they asked each other at the same time, making them start, then they giggled nervously. They nodded silently this time and walked in.

A minute later, one Uzumaki Naruto opened the door to his apartment, revealing his two female friends.

"Good evening, ladies. I hope everything's alright? I have a clone making tea for us now." Naruto greeted with a smile as he stepped aside to let Hinata and Ino in before closing the door. Hinata noticed Naruto was wearing a loose dark blue tank top with a black pair of sport shorts. It was what he jokingly called his 'super awesome sealing outfit'. He picked the outfit to minimize the mess on his clothes as he practiced his fuijutsu skills. Hinata saw bolts of ink peppering Naruto's exposed skin, apparently from his time with the boys earlier in the afternoon. The outfit, which displayed his muscular arms, strong neck, and impressive pectorals, was not going to help Hinata control her hormones and she could tell Ino was going to have the same problem from her blatant ogling. Hinata gently elbowed Ino in the ribs when Naruto was not looking in their direction, making her jump slightly and gulp.

"Everything's great!" Ino chirped a little too brightly, making Hinata almost roll her eyes in exasperation. Naruto noticed the potted plant in Hinata's hands.

"That smells good." he commented as he looked carefully at the plant.

"Ano...we made sure it's not too harsh on your nose. Ino-chan and I wanted to give you a small thank-you gift for doing the seal on us. I know there might be some awkward moments tonight and we appreciate your willingness to deal with anything for us." Hinata explained with a shy smile. Naruto struck a sheepish pose and showed a nervous smile.

"If we do everything right, we won't have anything to worry about." Naruto assured the girls. Ino shook her head.

"Nevertheless, we trust you whatever may happen, so don't be nervous."

Naruto nodded and gently took the potted plant from Hinata's hands and set it on the coffee table in the living room. The two girls exchanged glances and gave each other a thumb-up. _Plan to have the plant in the same room as them: already a success without even trying._

"I was thinking about getting a plant with some nice fragrance for the upcoming summer. Sort of like a natural air freshener in this room. I'm glad to see you girls took care of that with these wisteria. Thank you." Naruto said sincerely, shocking Ino completely. She wasn't expecting Naruto to know even the name. While the wisteria thrived in this country's climate, it was still a plant that grew up mostly in the more humid Land of Water. She had to admit his impressive knowledge about plants was _hot!_ Naruto, seeing the shocked look, had a twitching eyebrow.

"Oi, it is really that unbelievable that I knew something about this flower, Ino-chan?" he grumbled, making Ino jump.

"Oh! I know you're smart but I just wasn't expecting you to know something about a non-native plant." Ino tried to cover up her flustered reaction. Naruto smiled and shrugged.

"As you know already, I keep a few plants around this place." Naruto swept his arm out at the various plants littering the apartment. "I read books on the best way to take care of them so that's how I learned about this plant. I just didn't expect it to smell this good and it's not bothering my nose at all. You ladies made a good choice." Both girls beamed at Naruto's praise. Meanwhile, Hinata was watching Ino's reaction to Naruto's unexpected knowledge on plants and she just knew he unwittingly scored a ton of points with the flower-crazy girl. Yet this still didn't bother her at all as she watched Ino look at Naruto in a different light. She decided to stop wondering about the odd lack of jealousy when it came to Naruto and other female friends of theirs for the night and just deal with anything as they come for now.

"Ano...how did it go with the boys earlier this afternoon?" she decided to get some light conversation going. Naruto grimaced a little.

"Imagine me crammed into this living room with four shirtless and grunting boys. They were still sweaty from the spars at the academy earlier today and, at least to my sense of smell, they stunk up the room. That's why I was thinking about getting some new plants to get rid of any lingering odor."

The girls giggled at their friend's small misfortune.

"It was funny when I finished doing the seal on Shika, though. He didn't get up from the floor or even moved a single finger for five minutes. When I asked him what was wrong, he complained it was 'too troublesome to move because of the seal'." Naruto drawled out the last bit in his impersonation of Shikamaru, making the girls snort with laughter. His smirk widened as he delivered the punchline.

"I simply told him that I finished drawing the seal but it wasn't activated yet." Naruto finished with a shit-eating grin, making the girls collapse onto the living room couch with renewed laughter. Just then, a clone came in from the kitchen carrying cups of tea for its creator and the guests. The three made more conversation as they drank their tea. Despite the light talk, they all knew what was coming and a slight but nervous tension filled the air. When they finished their tea, things fell silent as all three looked down nervously at the empty cups in their laps. It was Ino that finally broke the silence.

"I guess we should get started. The sooner we do this, the quicker we'll move on to other things." she finally said with her gaze still focused on her cup, a light dusting of red on her cheeks. Naruto took in a deep breath and let it out slowly to relax.

"Who'd like to go first?"

"I'll do it." Hinata said quickly. Naruto nodded as he got up from his chair and stretched. Then he reached for a stack of prepared towels and handed one to Hinata.

"I'm going to prepare a batch of ink in my bedroom. That will take about five minutes. Use that time to get completely topless and lay out that towel on the floor then lay face-down on it. I will call out before I enter this room to make sure you're ready. That way I won't see anything you wouldn't want me to see. Drawing the seal will take about fifteen minutes. I could do it a lot faster but I want to be absolutely sure that every single bit of the seal is not out of order." Naruto said with a professional tone but a small blush forced its way onto his cheeks anyway. Hinata nodded resolutely. With that, Naruto stepped out of the room.

"I like how Naruto explained everything to us at the beginning. He was making sure we knew what was coming so we'd be more comfortable." Ino whispered from her place on the couch as she watched Hinata shrug off her overcoat, revealing a tight black t-shirt that didn't hide her growing bust at all. Even though she was still growing, Ino doubted very much she would catch up with Hinata in the bust department when they became full-fledged women.

"I know. That's one of the many reasons why I love him. He was always considerate and would glady put his friends' safety and comfort ahead of his own. Even when he haven't had his training, he jumped into a crowd of bullies without a second thought to protect me, even though it was the first time we met. We didn't even know each other's names until when he saved me from that Kumo nin a few months later." Hinata whispered back, making sure Naruto didn't hear with his sensitive ears. She pulled the shirt off, revealing a white silk adult bra. It was conservatively styled but it clearly showed the perfect teardrop shape of her breasts and the size was bordering on C-cup.

"I know about your size and everything but it really annoys me when I actually see your boobs for real. The fact you're already wearing an adult bra compared to the training ones for the rest of us is a slap in our faces too." Ino growled out quietly, her eyebrows twitching with envy.

"I can't help it! It shouldn't even be possible for me! Almost all the women in my clan, including my own mother, are smaller than this and I don't know why I'm the only one that's still growing. I'm already getting looks of betrayal from the others, including my own little sister!" Hinata whispered back in a frustrated tone as she finished unclasping her bra, letting it fall off her shoulders. She blushed and tried to cover her naked bust with her hands under Ino's twitching glare as she made her way over to the towel that was carefully laid next to the coffee table where the wisteria was sitting, to maximize the chance of the fragrance covering up what would be her obvious arousal. She then laid down on it face-down, exposing her back to the world as she pulled her long indigo hair to the side out of the way and tucked her folded arms into her sides to hide any side view of her breasts.

A few seconds later, Naruto's voice called out loudly and clearly from the hallway.

"I'm ready! Are you decent, Hinata-chan?"

"Yes! You may come in."

Naruto spent the past five minutes mentally preparing for this when he stepped into the living room with a brush and a bowl of special ink in his hands. However, he still couldn't help but gulp as his eyes took in the wonderful expanse of pale and smooth skin on Hinata's back that looked like touching it would be one of the worst sins in the world. He shook himself out of his brief daze and cleared his throat.

"The first thing I'm going to do is kneel next to you at your hips and I will set down my sealing stuff." he clearly announced in a professional tone. The girls appreciated Naruto going out of his way to make sure they were comfortable with him by explaining what he was going to do next.

"I am going to put both my hands on your back for a few second to clear away any possible stray hair, tread, or lint from your shirt. It's to make sure nothing would physically interfere with the seal being drawn on." Naruto said as he finished kneeling next to Hinata. Her breathing hitched slightly before she slowly nodded her head and her entire body shivered slightly with anticipation. Naruto gulped a little before he reached down and lightly touched his hands to the small of her back. He knew right away as he felt the texture of Hinata's skin that this was a hundred times better than silk and he felt like he truly committed a great sin and got away with it. He used the next few seconds to burn the texture into his memory.

Hinata used everything she had to hold in her loud gasp of appreciation as she felt her secret love's calloused hands touch her back directly for the very first time in her life. Naruto couldn't see Hinata's face from where he was kneeling but Ino clearly saw it from where she was sitting next to Hinata's head to offer any support if needed. She had to admit watching her friend's eyes flutter, her jaw clenching to hold back any sound of arousal, her hands coiling into tight fists underneath her chest, and her toes curling inward was awe-inspiring. Did a guy's hands feel that good? She knew she was even more sensitive. How was she going to deal with this?

Hinata felt like these few seconds that Naruto was caressing her were the longest in her life as she felt shockwaves of intense heat spread throughout her body and it took all she had not to instinctively arc her back upward for more of Naruto's touch. When Naruto reached the top of her shoulders and removed his hands, now finished clearing her back of any possible debris, Hinata then felt like these same few seconds were far too short and she couldn't resist a disappointed groan at the sudden loss of contact.

"You alright, Hinata-chan?" Naruto asked, concerned.

"I'm fine. I'm a little ticklish and I was making sure not to move around under your touch. Please continue, Naruto-kun." Hinata lied quickly, keeping her obvious desire for a lot more than a few seconds out of her voice.

"Ok. Now I'm going to actually draw the seal. I need to make sure it's perfectly centered on your back so I need to somewhat straddle your hips to line your spine with my sightline. I'm not going to sit on you so don't worry." Ino had to stifle a giggle when she saw Hinata's disgruntled expression that clearly said 'I would absolutely love it if you sat on me and let me feel more of you. Stop being so damn noble!'.

Instead, Hinata nodded her consent and Naruto shifted his position so he would be knelling on one side of Hinata's hips and using his other foot on the other side to support himself over Hinata without unnecessarily touching any of her body. She let herself relax as she heard Naruto dip his brush into the bowl of ink. She knew this part wasn't going to be erotic. Naruto was all business when he was drawing seals. As if to prove that, a cold and wet brush touched down and drew two long lines slowly across the small of her back making her flinch a little until she settled down. These strokes weren't part of the matrix. He only did this to get whoever he was drawing on used to the shock of the cold ink and the feel of the brush so they wouldn't squirm when he was trying to draw the matrix for real. Then he immediately went to work.

Hinata was glad the initial shock of the cold ink blew away most of her budding arousal and she was able to relax and enjoy his work on her. She was in awe as she felt Naruto's drawing starting to pick up speed. It was like a blur on her skin to her and she couldn't believe how many individual strokes the seal required yet they were all so compressed into the small space of her slim back. As she looked up at Ino's awestruck expression aimed in the direction of Naruto, she knew her friend was thinking the same thing. Before she even knew it, she wasn't feeling any new brushstroke anymore.

"Alright...I'm done. You did good keeping still. We'll give the ink a few minutes to dry then you'll activate it with your chakra. That's all that's needed to key this seal to you so you can control it yourself." Naruto announced as he got up to go into the kitchen and wash the brush. Ino leaned in to whisper.

"How was it, Hinata-chan?"

"It felt great at the start," Hinata almost purred with a satisfied looking grin. Ino smirked.

"Yeah, I saw that."

"Then everything went smoothly after that. He was considerate and professional about this."

"Think I'll be okay then?" Ino asked in a worried tone. When she said she was very sensitive to touch, she really meant it.

"You'll be fine, Ino-chan. You got me with you in case of anything. I can even do your back instead of Naruto-kun if that'll help."

"Um..would it be okay if I let him do that part? It looked like it felt...wonderful." Ino shyly said with a blush and a worried look in her eyes. She knew Naruto pretty much belonged to Hinata from the onset and she didn't want any bad blood. She was surprised to see a knowing smile on her friend's face.

"Ino-chan, I feel like there's more to Naruto-kun for you than being his friend and enjoying his good looks. Something happened in the past to change your view of him. I assume it was at around the same time you dropped the 'kun' suffix for Sasuke-san." Hinata whispered out her deduction and she knew she was right when she saw the panicked look on Ino's face. She hurried to assure the platinum blonde.

"Don't worry. I trust you and I trust Naruto-kun to treat both of us with equal attention, respect, and kindness. I honestly don't think there's anything you'd ever do that would make me feel threatened or hurt my feelings. Aside from selfishly keeping a certain person's attention only to yourself." Hinata said all of this with a smile, but Ino felt the underlying threat of bodily harm in that last sentence. She swallowed and nodded her head with an uncertain smile, feeling very relieved compared to before.

"I'll tell you the story soon after we're done with this." Ino promised just before Naruto's voice snapped them out of their little world.

"I'm coming back into the living room!"

"Yes!" they both replied at the same time.

Naruto appeared and announced he was going to closely inspect the seal matrix. After a moment of looking over it, he declared it perfect. He turned his back to the girls and closed his eyes so Hinata would be able to sit up to use hand seals freely.

"Ok, channel as much chakra as you can into your back." he called out. Hinata put her hands into a ram sign and concentrated on sending her chakra to the seal. For a moment it didn't do anything then she suddenly felt a large drain on her reserves as the seal absorbed most of her chakra to activate. She now felt a little tired and her breathing became short momentarily.

"It's disappearing!" Ino announced for Hinata when she saw the seal glow and fade into nothing on her friend's back.

"Great! That means it worked. It's not doing anything right now but you can control it anytime. I'll leave for a minute to let you get dressed and we'll test the seal real quick." Naruto said as he stepped out of the room to leave the girls alone.

A few minutes later, a fully dressed Hinata was standing in front of Naruto.

"All you have to do is put your hands into this special seal and then clearly call out the number according to the level you want the seal to be at. Like 'One' for level one and so on." Naruto explained as he put his hands into the specific hand sign to show the girls. The girls then practiced the new sign for a minute.

"If you need to turn off the seal, just use that sign and shout 'Kai!'. It'll stay off until you reactivate it again to the level you want next time."

Nodding, Hinata did the special seal and then clearly said 'One!'. She felt something ripple throughout her entire body and her arms instantly felt a little heavy. She tried moving her arms around and encountered actual resistance. However, it didn't feel like she was trying to move through water like Shikamaru described it. It just slowed her down a small bit. She wondered if she was going to move on to level two like Naruto did.

"Ano...Naruto-kun, may I test it on you?" Hinata asked as she shifted her body into an attacking kata. Naruto just smiled for confirmation. Before Ino could even try to say it was a bad idea to fight in someone's living room, Hinata struck fast and true with her right hand in a two-fingered thrust, following an almost unpredictable path using her natural flexibility, toward Naruto's left temple. The blonde caught the hand easily with a casual expression when it was less than an inch from its target, and he held it firmly at the wrist. The force of the strike being stopped suddenly generated a small gust, blowing all three's hair back a little. This was a shock to Hinata, as evidenced by her wide-eyed expression.

"So it did make a difference. I should not move on to the next level until I can slip that past you again."

Naruto nodded as he let go of her hand, satisfied with her conclusion

"What are you talking about, Hinata-chan? That was plenty fast and powerful to me!" Ino commented from between Naruto and Hinata while she combed a hand through her long hair to smooth out any stray from that gust.

"It might be to most people but the fact is Naruto-kun easily caught my strike when I threw it as fast and hard as I could." Hinata said as she tested her seal by walking around doing random movements with her limbs

"What do you mean? I know you're his best training partner but I've always seen him win over you in your spars."

"Tell me, Ino-chan. Did you ever see me manage to block or catch any of Hinata-chan's hand strikes lately?" Naruto interjected, his eyes shining with admiration for Hinata's ability to deal with level one of the resistance seal easily thanks to her own training. He knew it wouldn't be long before she moved on to level two.

"Now that you mention it, even though you usually won, you've always tried your best to dodge her and never tried to grapple with her unless it was an absolutely sure thing."

"That's right. I could see them coming but I could never move in time to catch her hands. She's that fast. The fact I easily saw that strike coming and caught it as if it was in slow motion meant the seal really is slowing her down. It's only by a small fraction, but it's working." he explained. Hinata came back to the two.

"Now that we know my seal's working, it's time for yours, Ino-chan." she said with a slightly teasing smile. She knew Ino was a little nervous about retrieving Naruto's attention. The platinum blonde blushed.

A few minutes later had Naruto stepping out to allow Ino to strip off her shirt and the camisole that was covering her budding bust. Hinata rolled her eyes as she watched Ino glare back and forth between their breasts, grumbling under her breath.

"Ino-chan, it's useless worrying about that just when you're starting to grow. You will be a beautiful woman in your own right and you shouldn't worry about others' looks anyway."

"It's easy for you to say that when you're sitting there with your C-cups." Ino quipped, but it was good-natured and she was glad for Hinata's encouragement. She laid down on her stomach with her arms acting as her pillow, not having any side boob for Naruto to accidentally glance at.

Naruto came back into the living room with a new brush. He was just as enticed by the soft and curvy look of Ino's back as he was with Hinata's but he needed to get this over with. He did with Ino what he did with Hinata, announcing his intention before doing it. As he knelt next to Ino and was preparing to touch his hands to her back, he was stopped.

"Ano...wait, Naruto-kun. I need to warn you that she's very sensitive to touch. She would be very ticklish." Hinata said for Ino's sake, who she noticed was getting too nervous to even warn Naruto about something like that.

"Hinata-chan..." Ino groaned out in embarrassment over her weakness.

"We know how Naruto-kun would act if you reacted loudly to his touch. He would think he hurt you and panic, perhaps making the situation worse than it should have been." Hinata calmly stated with a grin at Naruto's affronted expression.

"Oi! I'm rigtht here! And am I really that clumsy?" Naruto grumbled while the girls giggled at his expense. After it died down, Hinata reached out and grabbed ahold of Ino's hand for assurance.

"Ok, I'm ready, Naruto."

As soon as Naruto touched Ino's back, her reaction was predictably more extreme than Hinata's. She let out a open-mouthed gasp as her eyes widened to impossible proportions. Her entire being wanted her to actually moan out throatily as she felt Naruto's wonderfully rough and scorching hot hands inch their way up her back but she managed to turn that into a series of quick breaths and gasps, somehow passing that off as attempts to hold in her laughter to the remarkably clueless male doing this to her. Like with Hinata, the short time Naruto was caressing Ino's back felt like the longest period of time ever in her short life and she actually didn't want this to end. All of her conscious thoughts were focused on telling herself not to ask for more before she noticed she was fading slowly into unconsciousness.

The next thing Ino knew, she was still lying on her stomach and she knew right away Naruto was not by her.

"Ano...he just got done. He's washing the brush in the kitchen. The ink is drying so don't move just yet, Ino-chan." Hinata's voice cut into her consciousness and she looked up to see her indigo-haired friend smiling gently, and her hand was still engulfed by Hinata's.

"What happened? The last thing I remember was Naruto's hands on my back and it felt...good." Ino whispered with a blush.

"That was when I applied my chakra to a certain tenketsu in your wrist. It connects to a lot of the chakra pathways in and around your brain. A gentle application of chakra would cause your body to relax instantly. That was mainly why I took your hand. Just in case you were about to lose it." Hinata admitted to Ino's wide-eyed shock.

"I was?"

"It looked like you were about to beg for more, and at that point I wasn't sure if you would have cared about your modesty." Ino blushed bright red at the picture in her head.

"Hinata-chan...please tell me I didn't do anything stupid in front of Naruto." she begged.

"You didn't. I just told Naruto-kun that you were trying not to laugh and when I made you relax, I convinced him you were using a special clan technique to relax completely so you wouldn't be ticklish under his brush. He believed it all and finished everything lke it was nothing." Hinata explained with an reassuring smile. Ino laughed suddenly.

"Funny thing is, my clan really do have a technique for that!" she admitted before the girls broke into laughter. After a moment, Ino sighed with relief as she shifted her hips a little.

"Thank Kami you suggested the wisteria. I think I'm going have to change before I go to bed tonight." Ino admitted, making Hinata blush at the implication. The blond girl continued.

"I honestly didn't want to show too much of this side of me to a guy I'm not even sure I like. "

"Ano...I was under the impression you did considering the fact you admitted he was responsible for changing your views on boys." Hinata pointed out with a raised eyebrow.

"He did. Because of him, I understand how important it is to meet a boy that genuinely appreciates me and cares for my welfare. Otherwise I might have learned that the hard way after many bitter disappointments. Before then, I was only interested in who was the coolest, not if he would treat me like a person or an object. Now I want to make sure the boy cares about me as much as I would him. Even though Naruto did this for me, it didn't mean I'm automatically hot for him. I know he's going to be a great man in the future, but I want to wait and see what'll happen. So you don't have to worry about me trying to get Naruto's attention alongside you for now." Ino finished with a mischievous smirk.

"Something tells me I would've been fine with that, as long as it was friendly between us." Hinata admitted much to Ino's surprise. They didn't get to talk any more when Naruto announced his return. Five minutes later, Ino was fully clothed and moving around getting used to her activated seal.

"Damn, how are you two not feeling this?! I feel like I'm underwater completely and it's awkward making any movement. This'll take some getting used to." Ino remarked in awe as she raised an arm with some difficulty.

"It'll make you stronger and faster. Just use that for two weeks. You don't even have to try to spar with that on. Just use it for everyday things then turn it off at the end of the two weeks. You'll feel a huge difference then. After that, I'm sure you'd be happy to continue using it." Naruto assured with a smile.

"I'll take your word for it, Naruto. Thank you for doing this for us. I hope I didn't make anything awkward for you." Ino said with a formal bow which Hinata copied as well. Naruto did his sheepish pose and laughed.

"I'm always happy to help my friends. As long as it helps keep anyone out of trouble in this dangerous world, I would do anything." he declared. Ino's eyes softened.

"I know you would. You already did something for me last year and I came out of it much better. I never did thank you for that, did I?" Ino murmured demurely.

"Don't worry about that. I did what I had to do." Naruto nervously waved it off, hoping to not bring it up again. He then was surprised when Ino wrapped her arms around his neck suddenly for a quick hug.

"Really...thank you." she whispered. Naruto could only respond by hugging her back and they let go of each other with smiles. Hinata was watching this with amused interest. She would have to get that story out of Ino sooner or later.

Eventually, it was time for Hinata and Ino to go home and Naruto volunteered to walk them. A ten-minute walk later had Naruto and Hinata bidding Ino good night at the Yamanaka Flowers shop. Naruto and Hinata then started walking together to the Hyuuga compound. They were now alone walking down some barely-lit residential streets. Something was on Hinata's mind for the past week and she decided now was as good time as any to bring it up.

"Ano...where's Anko-san? I haven't seen her around you lately." she ventured.

"I didn't tell you? She's been out on a long mission for the past three weeks. Told me she was going to take a squad and chase down a bunch of missing nin making some noise near the capital. She should be back soon though." Naruto nonchalantly said with his arms behind his head. Hinata nodded in understanding.

She had to admit to herself that her reaction to Anko suddenly popping into Naruto's life last summer was a little immature. To her, Anko was suddenly hanging out with Naruto as if they had been best friends since they were born. She realized it was natural for her to feel threatened by Anko's boisterous and flirty attitude, especially with that amazing body of hers. The heiress was ashamed to admit she got jealous at how easily Naruto and Anko could just be themselves and get along while she herself remained reserved around Naruto, even after four years of close friendship. She wanted to blame some sort of trick Anko was pulling on Naruto for them to be friends so easily but Hinata should have known to trust Naruto's to judge people better than that. The more Hinata learned about her, despite their slightly-less-than-friendly competition for Naruto's attention, the more she realized Anko was a great and loyal companion to Naruto. She also had things that Hinata couldn't hope to have.

There was Anko's independence to do and say exactly what she wanted and not care about what the rest of them think. Hinata couldn't do that because she had to uphold the reputation of the Hyuuga clan as one of its representatives. The older girl also wore her heart on her sleeve and was almost always honest with herself around people she trusted all the time. If she decided she wanted to passionately kiss Naruto in the middle of a busy market district, she would have done it at that moment. In comparison, it made Hinata nearly faint at the very idea of being assertive and flirtatious with Naruto in public. (Behind closed doors would be a very different story, however.) She saw how Anko never took the few good things she had in life for granted and tried her best to nurture them, including her friendship with Naruto. Hinata had to admit she caught herself a few times taking the high likelihood she would be romantic with Naruto for granted and believed everything would fall into place as long she just stood by Naruto. Realizing that, along with watching Anko actively culivating her relationship with Naruto, lit a fire under her the past few months and she was now also actively getting closer to Naruto. Lastly, Hinata knew about Anko's situation and how similar it was to Naruto's. Because of that, the young jounin could completely understand how Naruto felt about dealing with the village's hatred. They were able to take comfort in each other whenever something happened within the village for either. Despite her best efforts, not even Hinata could provide that kind of support for Naruto. All she was able to do is offer soothing words and hope for the best.

Hinata already could see how happy Naruto was making Anko and they didn't even notice this. Despite the idea of Ino or any other girl possibly liking Naruto in the future, Hinata knew none of them would be as close to earning Naruto's affections as she and Anko were at this moment. It didn't matter that Anko was seven years older than them because Hinata's eyes did not deceive her as she watched how Anko looked at Naruto lately, even if she hadn't realized she was doing that. Right now, Hinata decided she wanted to know something.

"Ano...Naruto-kun, how do you really feel about Anko-san?" she murmured quietly into the night air. Naruto clearly heard her and he turned his head. At first he was going to answer in his typical fashion; announce loudly she was a blood-sucking psychopath that was right at home in a blood bank or something like that. He stopped when he saw the look in Hinata's eyes and knew he had to take this seriously. They came to a stop and stared at each other in the middle of a dark street not far from the compound. The moon, in its last quarter phase, cast an eerie glow on the two of them, bringing out Hinata's expectant white eyes. Naruto felt himself fall into them a little before he shook it off and cleared his throat.

"I think..."

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**Lemon: Wait. I think we should cut it off here.**

**Hazel: What?! Seriously?! I'm already 2/3 of the way to the 40,000+ words count for this chapter! **

**Lemon: Now that I think about it, isn't that too much awesome for even the most devoted readers? Instead we'll split this awesome chapter into two smaller but still awesome chapters. We'll post the next chapter a week from now. That'll give everyone time to weep at the awesomeness of this chapter then they'll recover before they have to weep again when we post the next one. We'll dehydrate the readers otherwise.**

**Hazel: But to stop it here like that...even I think that's evil.**

**Lemon: Better this than those two other scenes you thought up.**

**Hazel: Wow...these are the most evil cliffhangers ever! I...I...need to...torture the readers with one of these!**

**Lemon: No! Don't go down the dark...er...even darker path! Pick the lesser of the three evils! (bitchslaps Hazel) **

**Hazel: Ow...wow. Whew. Thanks for that, buddy.**

**Lemon: Here. Have a lemon to calm down.**

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**READ BELOW FOR IMPORTANT POLL ANNOUNCEMENT!**

**While I took some creative license with the conversation above compared to the much less exciting real life chat between me and LoverofLemon, the reason is pretty much the same. The contents I was stuffing into this chapter was getting too much to keep track of everything so upon my beta's suggestion, I decided we will split this chapter in half to make sure we get everything to you in a timely and orderly fashion. Think of this chapter as a peek into what's going on with Hinata at this point in the story and the next chapter will be a shift to the other girls. I wanted to get all of that done before an important event I'm planning happens. **

**As for what I vaguely did with Ino in this chapter, this is not a confirmation, I REPEAT NOT A CONFIRMATION that Ino will be involved with Naruto. She's having conflicting emotions and it could go either way in the future. I'm just setting Ino up for if you guys decide on adding a girl or two to the harem and she was picked. THAT'S RIGHT. I'M SETTING UP A POLL TO LET YOU GUYS VOTE ON WEITHER THIS STORY SHOULD HAVE AT LEAST ONE NEW GIRL ADDED OR NOT. If you decide yes, then I will set up a new poll in the next chapter to decide the girls. So it won't be just Ino if any of you don't like her as a choice. As long as I have a perfectly good reason why I should add this or that girl to the harem, I will put them up on the poll for voting. It won't be every single girl in the entire Naruto universe up for voting...just what I think will be logical additions to the story. You're welcome to comment or send me PMs convincing me why you think this girl or that girl should be in the story and I will consider only logical reasons. "Cuz she's hot and has huge tits ****lolz" is not a logical or even valid reason. :-) We'll worry about that later. For now I need to see if you guys even want more girls or not. We'll see you next week. **


	15. Everyone Loves Naruto

**Hazel: Oi, Lemon! I have this great idea on how to end this chapter. **

**Lemon: Oh, lemme see. **

**Hazel: Well? It's going to be great! **

**Lemon:...**

**...**

**...****Hazel?**

**Hazel: Yeah? it's awesome, isn't it?**

**Lemon: Do you want me to bitchslap you a hundred times?**

**Hazel: ...I guess not. **

**Lemon: Go and lock this away in that vault for 'cliffhangers that destroys the very fabric of reality'! I don't know why you keep coming up with ideas that would tear this website to pieces when the readers riot. Just one of your 'great idea' is more evil than the Halo 2 ending, and we all know that's seriously evil! Only Kami knows what would've happened if I hadn't offered to beta early in your story. **

**Hazel: I get to have my fun, that's what! **

**Lemon: Oh, it's bitchslappin' time! **

**Hazel: *runs away laughing evilly* **

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**Yup, LoverofLemon just saved you guys from a horrible fate. Be thankful to him. :-) Usual thanks goes to him for his tireless work in reading my limitless drafts over the past week. **

**I was going to write a joke about having 499 reviews just as I'm posting this chapter but it turns out this story just got the 500th review while I'm ****writing the world's most hilarious joke. Now everything's ruined. You suck, 500th reviewer! **

**I'm just kidding. I'm so shocked I actually got 500 reviews in any story I'm writing. I honestly never thought I would get that many reviews just fifteen chapters into the story...or even the fact that like 95% of them has been positive. Even if i never get another single review for the rest of the story, I'd be happy with 500. But seriously...gimme reviews. Hazel needs more or I give you an evil cliffhanger every chapter from now on!**

**Well, we got a great chapter to you a week after the last one as promised and I hope you'll enjoy it.**

**POLL RESULT**

**Wow, a poll on choosing to add more girls to a story that has predominately male readership most likely interested in reading this for the harem aspect. (Im sure some of you guys said great story but who knows?) The results were so predictable and so lopsided that I already read the future when I posted the poll. TWO NEW GIRLS WILL BE ADDED TO THE HAREM! I've not had much time to think about each possible girl and what use they would be to the story so I've decided to wait till the next chapter to start the poll for that. At that point, I will decide on which girls to put in the poll and I will clearly explain what I think would be their contribution to the story and why they should be picked. Keep in mind if I picked these girls for the poll, it's because I believe I can add them seamlessly into the story and not just leave them useless after the intros and only appear for the sexy acts. So if any of you still want to see a certain girl added to the poll, let me know however you wish. Obviously Ino will be in the poll to begin with and we'll go from there. **

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**WARNING: This story will contain mature language, sexual themes, and graphic depictions of violence and gore.**

**DISCLAIMER: I do not own Naruto or any of its characters.**

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**Chapter 15: Everyone Loves Naruto**

**Early one morning at a training field in Sunagakure**

"**Kamatachi no Jutsu(Cutting Whirlwind)!" **a fifteen-year-old blond girl shouted as she swung her massive battle fan. A huge gust of cutting whirlwind came into being and spun across the landscape in front of the girl, slicing up dead trees, leaving gashes in boulders, and sucking up the dry desert soil to form large dust clouds. The girl then closed her steel fan and planted it upright with a loud thud on the ground next to her. Panting heavily and sweating profusely under the hot desert sun, she tugged a small towel free from the black sash of her light blue battle kimino and used it to wipe the sweat and grime off her face before draping it over one of her shoulders.

Sabaku no Temari let out a weary sigh as she watched her creation slowly die down to a small gust before disappearing.

"Fourteen uses of that jutsu in a row this time...one more than last week. That'll do for the day." the quad-pigtailed girl murmured softly to no one in particular as she strapped the closed giant fan to her back. She spent most of her time since she graduated from the academy training and doing random missions and she had grown up quite a bit in the last three years since she was in Konoha. She was about to reach her full height and her body had already undergone most of puberty. Her wide hips, heart-shaped behind, and growing bust all wrapped up in her conservatively-styled but tight battle kimino, were testament to that fact. However, other usual signs of being a woman stopped at that as she preferred to be somewhat abrasive, never liked talking girly topics like boys and clothing, and she hated wearing makeup, unlike one of her brothers. Because of that, she found it hard to make friends with girls her age. As for boys, she wasn't impressed with every male she met so far in this village and was only too happy to let the threat of being around her powerful father and brothers scare them off since she didn't care to befriend cowardly males.

The lone girl walked off the training ground toward the main part of Suna. She was walking slowly in order to recover from pushing herself past her limits just now. Even though she had two years to get used to having her giant steel fan with her all the time, she certainly didn't appreciate the extra weight when her tired legs screamed in protest against moving with so much extra weight. She didn't notice the villagers giving her a wide berth since she was used to being treated like this and simply stopped caring a long time ago. Even her fellow genin didn't want anything to do with her other than having to interact with her professionally. A small part of the reason for this treatment was because her father was the Kazekage, a cold and ruthless leader of this village, and the people didn't want to risk upsetting his daughter. The larger part of that reason was her youngest brother, Gaara. As Temari turned down a main street, lined with fearful onlookers, toward the Kazekage's office, she thought about her youngest brother.

Gaara was feared and vilified in this village as the jinchuriki of the Ichibi, Shukaku. Until recently, he used to have bouts of insanity and killed anyone nearby as Shukaku continued to corrupt the young boy's mind. However, thanks to extensive training under their father, Gaara gained better control of Shukaku's power and, to Temari's horror, his bouts of insanity gave way to cold indifference to any life. A reason, even a meager one, was all he needed to rip apart anyone in his sight as he started to believe his sole reason to exist was to kill. Temari wondered not for the first time if it was better for Gaara to have remained insane. At least she was able to tell when Garra was about to lose it then took measures to avoid him before the big meltdown. Now, she would have no warning if he decided to kill her. If he decided she interfered with his reason to exist in any way, that was it for her. In the next instant, her blood and insides would be squeezed out of her like toothpaste in his **Sabaku Sōsō(Sand Waterfall Funeral)**.

Temari suppressed her shudder at the image as she entered the Kazekage tower and made her way to her father's office. She knocked on the door and waited. A muffled "Enter." was heard before she opened the door to see her father, the Kazekage, sitting behind a modest desk in a modest office. He was in his Kazekage outfit but did not wear the hat and veil. He only wore them outside the village or when he met with officials. If Temari needed any help imaging how Gaara would look when he grew up, the perfect example was sitting in front of her. They were near identical with their short dark red hair, their black-ringed eyes (at least whenever her father was controlling gold dust), and their lean physique. Temari stepped up in front of the desk and stood waiting for her father to shift his attention up from the paperwork sewn around the desk. Despite their cold and formal relationship, she had to fight to stifle a smirk when she heard his muttering.

"...so what if I can control gold dust? It's not going to help here and I'd give anything to learn a jutsu that would get rid of this blasted paperwork quickly..."

Temari silently waited a few more minutes before her father perked his head up from the papers.

"Thank you for your patience, Temari. I requested for you to come here to ask you a few questions. How did your training go?" the Kazekage asked as he leaned back into his chair, his tone betraying neither interest or indifference.

"I'm gaining more experience with my battle fan every day and I'm learning to make better and efficient use of my chakra reserves." Temari reported, her tone just as neutral. She wondered where this was going.

"I also hear you're much more skilled compared to other genin. I apologize once again for holding you back from promotion until I feel Gaara is ready. Kankuro is also coming into his own as a shinobi as well. It is my desire for all three of you to be a team and work together on getting promoted to the chunin rank. I hope you understand that."

Even though Temari had heard this many times before, it sent a cold chill down her spine every time she was reminded that she would have to work with Gaara for any length of time. She straightened up with her gaze focused on a spot just above the sitting kage.

"Yes, Kazekage-sama."

"I have a somewhat personal proposal for you."

Temari shifted her eyes down to look into her father's expressionless eyes and inclined her head, indicating for him to continue.

"I will be leaving tomorrow for Konohagakure for some diplomatic matters." the Kazekage paused to let that settle in. He noticed Temari's stature became even more stiff at the mention of Konoha.

"You may come with me if you still have business you'd like to take care of in that village." he offered to his daughter. He knew she was still regretting what happened last time she was there, no matter how well she acted like she moved on from that incident. He may have been non-existent as a father and he turned one of his children into a weapon for the 'sake of protecting the village', but he wished to at least make sure his two other children ended up with some measure of happiness. Even if it meant befriending a shinobi from another village.

Kankuro was easy. Get him a mountain of puppet parts and an endless supply of women's makeup and he was set for life. Temari was more difficult since she closed herself off from everyone in Suna and, while she had a relatively comfortable life as royalty in this village, she wasn't happy. The first and only time he saw a truly geninue smile on Temari since the death of his wife was when she returned to the main gate from her tour of Konohagakure with that blond boy. Somehow, this Uzumaki Naruto was able to break her out of her shell a little in a span of few hours. He decided it was worth offering Temari a chance to come back to Konoha and hopefully resolve any leftover guilt from that Kyuubi incident once and for all and move on. The Kazekage watched Temari's teal eyes widen slightly at his offer.

Temari remained stoic on the outside but the inside was a different story. Her emotions were in turmoil as she thought over this chance. If she took this offer to travel with her father, she would be able to seek out Naruto and apologize profusely to him until he forgave her. She'd have patched up what little friendship she could salvage with him and move on to better things between them. It was going to be that easy.

Yet, something held Temari back from accepting right away. It had been almost three years. Surely he had forgotten about her by now, even though she hadn't. Even if he hadn't forgotten, there were no reason for him to forgive her. Instead, he might have built up resentment against her for hurting his feelings so badly. Not to mention that Hyuuga friend of his and she had a feeling that girl and Naruto were much closer than what she saw that day. How would that girl react to her presence around Naruto? Temari was also ashamed to admit that she was still wary of the fact that Naruto carried the Kyuubi within him. To stem her guilt, Temari rationalized that she only saw Naruto for no more than five hours and she couldn't know what he was really like from that small sample size. She kept overlaying the image of her psychotic brother onto Naruto's and subconsciously told herself to be afraid around the blonde as well. Just as much she wanted to go back to Konoha if only to apologize, she was apprehensive of what awaited her there.

Finally, after a long moment of silence, Temari made her decision and opened her mouth with the idea to accept the invitation.

"I'm sorry, Kazekage-sama. Thank you for your offer but I respectfully decline." Temari was surprised at what came out of her mouth but it was too late to take it back. She suddenly felt like a coward; like this village's men she usually derided. The slight narrowing of her father's eyes at her reply added a lot to the mental blow.

"I see. I'll leave early in the morning so don't expect to see me around for the next week. Please pass that on to your brothers if you're able. If that is all, you're dismissed." the Kazekage said cooly. Temari looked like she wanted to say otherwise for an instant before she schooled her expression and turned around to leave. Her father's voice stopped her at the door.

"Temari, I may run into the Uzumaki boy. Is there any message you'd like for me to pass on to him?"

Temari stood at the door for a long moment. Upon hearing that name, a large part of her screamed at her to turn around and take the trip to Konoha or at least get a message to Naruto but, for some reason, she kept listening to the smaller and cowardly part of her that didn't want to deal with the emotional turmoil that would surely occur from this. She silently shook her head before slowly stepping out and closing the door behind her. If the Kazekage was able to see her face at that moment, he'd see his daughter fighting to keep tears from falling out of her eyes as her face twisted into an expression of self-loathing. The Kazekage sighed and rubbed his eyelids.

_She's so much like her mother, even in their stubbornness. They'd rather wallow in regret as punishment than try to chase after a better outcome. I wonder if Karura-chan would have fought harder against the council's choice to make Gaara the Ichibi host if she didn't feel she owed the village because of some mistakes she made in the past._

Spending a long moment looking out of the office's window over the village, the Kazekage came to a decision. He turned to the desk and pulled out a blank scroll to write down what he needed to do for a plan he came up with in his head.

_I may have been a shitty father, but if there's only one thing I could do for her, it'll be this. It may take a while to come to fruition, but I think Temari will eventually find this a blessing. I just hope she won't spend too long cursing me first before she'd accept this. _

**Around the same time in Konohagakure's Hyuuga Compound**

The same morning sun shone warmly into a large and open breakfast nook of the Hyuuga clan head's luxurious and tastefully-decorated home. Inside the nook was a small and cozy rectangular dining table, used only for breakfasts, most lunches, and snacks. The Hyuuga clan head, Hiashi, sat at one end with his back to the sunlight as he silently read over the local news and some daily reports about the large clan he controlled. Hinata and Hanabi sat to the left of him and Naruto sat to his right with Tomoe sitting on the blonde's other side. Tomoe was a Branch member personally selected by Hiashi to be the primary caretaker for Hinata and Hanabi after Hitomi's death. Although she was the one that prepared the meals and took care of the house like a servant, the girls adored her and Hiashi greatly respected her so she was seen as a part of the family in many ways, including eating meals with them as an equal.

They were enjoying eating their breakfast of miso soup, mackerel, and steamed rice with tea. It was a happy and regular morning for all except Naruto, who seemed to be receiving a somewhat frigid reception from Hiashi. Beautiful and mischievous Tomoe was only too happy to point it out for her own amusement.

"Ara, ara...it seems you have done something to earn my lord's ire once again, Naruto-sama." she pointed out innocently, not even bothering to hide her cheshire grin very well behind her left hand at Naruto's obvious discomfort while he continued to eat in silence with a twitching eyebrow. Hinata and Hanabi were doing their best to eat while fighting back their own amusement while Hiashi continued to stoically read over his clan's reports. Naruto finally finished his breakfast and formally set his chopsticks down across the empty plate and wiped his mouth slowly with a napkin, his eyebrow still twitching much to the present females' amusement. It was funnier watching their favorite blonde try to ignore everything rather than react for some reason. After carefully folding the napkin and setting it down, Naruto let out a loud sigh, catching everyone's attention.

"Yes, it seems like I have earned Lord Hyuuga's ire and it breaks my heart, Tomoe-san. However, I am unable to ascertain as to what it is I have done wrong. Therefore, I must make a deduction. I believe I can solve this in three questions." Naruto spoke clearly and formally with his eyes closed and facing straight ahead, making Hinata and Hanabi almost unable to contain their snickering. Tomoe had no such reservation. The only reaction out of the stone-still Hiashi was a slight flicker of the paper in his hands.

"First, I would be honored if you would allow me to inquire something of you, my fair lady." Naruto began smoothly as he opened his eyes and turned to face Tomoe fully. The servant blushed prettily and giggled at the compliment before nodding. The girls were holding in their sides tying not to laugh.

"I have noticed a pattern in the occasions I supposedly earned Lord Hyuuga's ire since all of this began. Please enlighten me on what week of this month is, Tomoe-san." It was apparent to everyone that Hiashi caught on to what Naruto was getting at since the paper in his hands flinched more visibly this time and his eyebrows furrowed slightly.

"Ara, I believe this is the forth full week of the month." Tomoe answered airily. She knew what was getting under Hiashi's skin but it was fun seeing her lord squirm a little. Naruto shifted his focus to the snickering Hanabi, who stopped suddenly under Naruto's gaze and tried her best to look prim and proper, even when her lips were twitching, trying not to smile.

"Lady Hanabi, what does Lord Hyuuga do on the weekend before forth week of each month?"

"My good sir, on that weekend every month, Father looks over the entire clan's monthly expenses report and checks for any discrepancy." Hanabi replied crisply and haughtily, hamming this up for all it was worth. Naruto's lips twitched upward for an instant before he shifted his gaze to Hinata, who now stopped raising her cinnamon bun midway to her opening mouth.

"Lady Hinata, this is my final question. What would the all-seeing Lord Hyuuga find on such a report that may make him slightly less than warm toward me for a few days each month? I believe this began six months ago at approximately the same time as when I accidentally introduced you to the pastry you are now holding in your hands." Naruto pointed at the offending pastry dramatically, making Hinata drop it to the plate with a clatter in shock. She shrank into herself as her gaze refused to meet anyone's for the moment.

"Ano...i-i-it may be the total expense of pastries bought by this clan each month." she murmured shyly, making Hanabi and Tomoe snicker while Naruto smirked. Both Hiashi's eyebrows were now twitching continuously and the paper in his hands was shaking a little.

"Therefore, it is my firm belief the reason Lord Hyuuga has had a slightly chilly deposition toward me for a few days at this time each month was because he saw that specific expense, which is probably shockingly high. He was then reminded of the fact that I was the one who introduced Lady Hinata to cinnamon buns." Naruto concluded with finality as if he just solved a great mystery. Hinata was now blushing and squirming as she looked down at her hands folded in her laps. Hanabi and Tomoe were now giggling uncontrollably.

Finally, Hiashi abruptly put the paper down on the table with a loud crinkle, ceasing all noise around the table as they all watched Hiashi's eyebrows furrow further into a frown in a rare display of emotion for him.

"My eldest daughter's eating habit alone cost more than the entire clan's monthly supply of hair products. How is that possible?" he finally said with disbelief clear in his voice. Everyone sat in stunned silence for a long moment until Naruto broke it with a snort of laughter. Tomoe and Hanabi followed that with their giggles.

"Father! Naruto-kun! You're mean..." Hinata whined adorably. After a moment of laughing and teasing between the children, Tomoe clapped her hands sharply catching everyone's attention.

"Now that the morning entertainment is over, it's almost time for Lady Hinata and Naruto-sama to leave for the academy. Lady Hanabi is to begin her private tutoring as well." Tomoe announced. The women stood to take their plates to the kitchen. Naruto was about to get up and do the same when Hiashi's voice stopped him.

"Naruto-san, please remain here for a moment." Naruto complied and allowed Tomoe to take his plate and the women moved into the kitchen area, chatting excitedly about the day ahead.

"My apologies, Naruto-san. I was never truly upset with you about my daughter's eating habits. She was bound to come across that treat sooner or later even without your part in it." Hiashi formally said when the two males were alone. Naruto shook his head and waved it off.

"I knew that, Hiashi-sama. You're usually hard to catch off guard so it was fun getting to do that." he said with a foxy smirk. Hiashi nodded and smiled a little.

"I know what you are doing for my daughters and I appreciate it."

"What am I doing?" Naruto tried to be clueless but quailed under Hiashi's deadpan expression.

"Do you honestly expect me to believe that act?"

"Alright." the blonde admitted with a sigh. "I know I'm trying to keep the girls happy and laughing as much as I can."

"I do not have to check a calender to know when it is about time for you to leave for your yearly training trip." Hiashi commented as he watched his daughters and Tomoe chatting happily while they washed their dishes on the other side of the large kitchen/nook area. Naruto's blue eyes softened.

"Yeah, every year they always started inviting me over for almost every single meal here for a whole week leading up to the day I leave, since they want to spend every possible minute with me." he said with a wan smile.

"Like the past three summers, they will miss you terribly this time too, Naruto-san." Hiashi said softly. Naruto nodded sadly and they fell silent for a moment. Naruto slowly stood up but leaned down next to Hiashi.

"I think I know the particular food you should avoid giving Hanabi-chan in case she may have Hinata-chan's level of addiction to it." he whispered but he was surprised by a hand suddenly shooting up to grab his collar and pulling him in a mere inch from Hiashi's frightfully desperate face.

"That knowledge must never get out, understand?! We cannot risk both my daughters having such addictions! This clan will truly go under!" he whispered harshly.

"That's why I'm whispering this to you!" Naruto was trying not to show discomfort under Hiashi's expression of pure paranoia.

"I can read lips. Mouth it to me silently." Hiashi whispered almost frantically as he repeatedly glanced in the direction of Hanabi making sure she didn't see this interaction. Naruto rolled his eyes at the clan head's extreme caution. He shrugged and mouthed: 'Banana pudding'_._

"Of course." Hiashi breathed out dramatically as he gently let go of Naruto's collar and seemed to stare out blankly into the distance, linking together clues in his mind. He knew his youngest daughter liked banana and many snacks that had its flavor. She had yet to try some banana pudding, which was considered one of the most delectable banana-flavored treat around, and he would be damned if he let his daughter eat one now!

As Hiashi was silently going over his plan to tell the clan's chefs, Tomoe, and Hanabi's private tutors to not even mention this as-of-now forbidden snack, Naruto shrugged bemusedly and walked off to leave the clan head in his own world.

**Later in the afternoon at the academy**

_What's going on here?! _Haruno Sakura was screaming in her mind as she watched her friend, Yamanaka Ino, easily and mercilessly knock another female student out of the sparring ring with impressive strength and speed. She was happy to see Ino improving a lot but she was also jealous that the gap between her and Ino was steadily growing wider, despite her increased training.

"Winner by ring out, Yamanaka Ino! Please take your seat with the others. Inuzuka Kiba and Aburame Shino come forward!" Iruka called out as Ino giddily skipped over to Naruto and Hinata at the edge of the sparring ring on the opposite side from the pinkette. The two selected combatants stood up and made their way to the center of the ring.

Sakura noticed Ino was so happy about something that she jumped on and hugged both Naruto and Hinata. It clearly wasn't just about the victory just now; something else was involved as well. She noticed Naruto seemed to have reminded Ino about something and she stuck her tongue out cutely in embarrassment. Sakura frowned in confusion as she watched Ino put her hands together into a seal she never saw before and whisper something. Nothing changed except that her arms seemed laden with some extra weight when Ino just let them flop to her sides lazily. She obviously was complaining a little while Naruto shook his head in exasperation and Hinata giggled with a hand covering her lips.

Before Sakura could dwell on this some more, she was distracted by the oohing and ahhing of the large crowd of students standing around the twenty-five-meter sparring circle. She shifted her attention to the center and watched Kiba and Shino display some impressive taijutsu. That wasn't new since they usually gave Sasuke issues in their past spars. However, what was new to her was the polished and efficient way they moved around the ring and their strikes seemed sharper and cleaner now. It was like they spent some time practicing against superior opponents that forced them to push themselves hard and gain experience. After a few minutes of impressive sparring, it was decided Kiba was the winner when he barely managed to force Shino out of the ring when he went all out with his clan style's Four Legs stance. Sakura wondered what the hell was going on as she watched Naruto call out to the boys to 'remember to turn it back on' and the boys nodded back in his direction as they walked off the ring to make way for the next two combatants.

Across the ring, Ino was watching Sakura's confused expression with half amusement and half guilt.

"I really hate leaving Sakura-chan in the dust like that but as long as she doesn't want to join this group and practice with us, she may never catch up." Ino commented sadly as she watched Sakura analyze the previous bout and she knew her pink-haired friend was trying to figure out why past and current data didn't compute. Naruto frowned.

"She specifically said she doesn't want to join the group? I would've said yes if she asked nicely." he said. Ino shook her head.

"No, she hadn't said anything about me hanging out with you guys but it's clear she wouldn't want to and that's because a certain blonde's in the group."

"Oh, she doesn't like you anymore? I can see why." Naruto retorted with a straight face. An indignant Ino swatted his arm sharply and Hinata giggled from his other side.

"So it's just because I don't let her bully me like how she tried to make fun of me to help herself 'look good for my Sasuke-kun'." Naruto acted out the last part in a high-pitched voice like a lovesick fangirl. This made both Hinata and Ino shudder.

"Ano...please do not talk like that again." Hinata almost ordered.

"Yeah, what she said." Ino added. Naruto grimaced and felt a little dirty so he agreed wholeheartedly.

"Anyway, I believe Sakura-chan said something to that effect." Ino got back on track. Naruto shrugged.

"In my opinion, I did her a favor. Putting others down to 'look good for someone' just makes you look stupid to every single person in the vicinity, including the one you're trying to look good for."

"That was long ago and she been changing a lot lately. She's just being stubborn holding on to some belief she would 'lose any chance' with Sasuke-san if he knew she was training with 'another man', especially his self-appointed nemesis." Ino supplied. Naruto looked around the crowd of students in confusion.

"He has a nemesis?" he asked in genuine surprise, making Hinata giggle and Ino almost face-fault.

"I'm talking about you!" she growled in exasperation.

"Me? Oh, I've never bothered to think of him as a rival. I would say my closest rival right now would be Anko-chan. She's so much stronger than me and I have a long way to catch up but I always did my best in my spars with her."

"I agree with that assessment. She does make you strive to improve yourself, Naruto-kun." Hinata interjected, remembering the few times she watched them spar. Anko was brutal and efficient in destroying Naruto systematically but she saw he was truly having fun and learning.

Naruto looked over at his indigo-haired friend with some scrutiny. Ever since that night when he honestly answered her question about Anko, she seemed to have changed some of her attitude toward the young jounin. There was none of the slight wariness he felt from her whenever Anko's name was mentioned and she seemed to be totally secure with the fact that Anko was friends with Naruto now.

_It was odd answering that question and then she just had this satisfied smile on her face while we finished walking the rest of the way back that night._

_**I can't help you with that. Not even I, a female, could fully understand a different female's thought process in some regards. **_Kurama added in from the mindscape.

_I'd be shocked if you did understand. You're like the biggest tomboy I've ever met, literally and figuratively. You're more 'one of the guys' than a girly girl. _

_**You think you can say that and get off easy, you puny little shit?! Get your ass in here so I can shove a Bijuudama up it! **_ the fox growled.

_Your honor, I present Exhibit A. _Naruto chuckled inwardly as he tuned out more of the fox's rant. He was going to get it later tonight but it was worth it riling his old friend up once in a while.

He was brought out of his banter by Iruka's loud and somewhat uncertain voice.

"Uchiha Sasuke and U-uzumaki Naruto...?"

A cheer went up around the assembled students as Naruto jerked his head up in surprise. He hadn't been called on to spar with Sasuke in a long while and it didn't look like Iruka planned this. After a quick good luck from the two girls, he hopped over to Iruka.

"Oi, something bothering you, Iruka-sensei?" he whispered to the confused teacher.

"Yes. This wasn't what I planned in advance. I was going to pair you against Shikamaru-san. Someone switched this around on the clipboard." he explained as he looked suspiciously at his clipboard like it betrayed him. Naruto's gaze was on Sasuke throughout Iruka's speech and he narrowed his eyes when he noticed Sasuke nod imperceptibly with a smirk in the direction of an equally smirking Mizuki.

"Well, I'll be sure to tell Shika that. He'll be thanking whoever did this profusely." Naruto joked before he added with a bored tone. "Looks like someone wants me to 'learn my place' or something by going up against an 'elite' and losing like usual."

"And will you be 'losing like usual'?" Iurka's voice was laced with his disapproval of Naruto's deception. Naruto only responded with a smirk.

"Just call the match like you see it, Iruka-sensei." he suggested before walking off to the center of the ring to face against Sasuke. Iruka followed to stand between the two boys. It was clear he didn't like this development from the frown on his face, but to call foul on this would just cause unnecessary confusion. Sasuke and Naruto just stared at each other; one with a cocky smirk and the other with a bored expression.

"What were you talking about with Iruka-sensei? Asking to forfiet already?" Sasuke said loud enough for everyone to hear, hoping to rile Naruto up enough to fight him more seriously. However, he wasn't expecting to see Naruto's eyebrows shoot up in genuine realization.

"Oi, Iruka-sensei, can I forfeit? This is too troublesome." he drawled out in a perfect impersonation of Shikamaru. This elicited uproarious laughter from some, boos from others, and an annoyed rant from a certain platinum blonde about Shikamaru's laziness spreading.

"Oi! That's my thing you're stealing." the genuine article called out lazily from somewhere in the audience, starting another round of laughter. Meanwhile, this only made Sasuke get more annoyed to say the least.

"Just fight me for real, you coward!" he growled out at Naruto's bored expression.

"Why bother? We both know the outcome. I'm going to lose like usual and you get your usual praises and further inflating of your already giant ego. Forget this. I'm stepping out, Iruka-sensei. Find another cannon fodder for this guy." Naruto announced as he turned around and started toward the edge of the sparring circle. Sasuke had enough of this blonde's infuriating attitude. How dare this no-name orphan belittle his efforts to improve himself and gain power to kill that man!

"Coward! We know why you can't stand up against me! It's because you have no pride in yourself and your name when your whore of a mother popped you out and abandoned you in some dirty alley, you no-name orphan!" he screamed to the blonde's back. He knew he screwed up as soon as he said that when everything went silent. Naruto stopped dead in his track and the temperature inside the ring seemed to have dropped several degrees. The silence was broken by most of the students shouting angrily at Sasuke to apologize for that remark since some of their relative and friends were orphans too. Even some of his supporters seemed to act like he was a despicable being now. Hinata was having to hold back a frothing Ino while a loudly buzzing Shino was doing the same with Kiba. The cold glares from Shikamaru and even the usually gentle Choji was enough to unnerve Sasuke as well. He tried to ignore it but even Sakura's expression of disbelief was enough to strike a small mental blow against him He turned his attention back to Naruto, who was standing deathly still facing away. The raven-haired boy looked up at Iruka only to flinch at the clear expression of disappointment in his face. For one fleeting moment, he almost wished Iruka would accept the forfeit because he knew he wasn't going to like anything Naruto would throw at him now. Especially when he saw the portion of the crowd Naruto was facing scramble away from his gaze in terror of whatever expression he was displaying at the moment.

It all fell silent again as everyone waited for Naruto to say or do something. Time seemed to have stopped for a long moment as everyone focused so hard on the stone-still blonde for even the slightest movement that almost all flinched when Naruto exhaled loudly as if he seemed to expel something out of his body. He turned around on his heels and Sasuke was confused to see what looked like a neutral expression with a pair of icy blue eyes. However, it didn't seem to be the case for those who knew him well when Ino gasped.

"He's seriously pissed. Naruto! He's not worth it!" she shouted out in a pleading tone. The way she said it like Sasuke was going to lose put some fire back under him and he growled at the insinuation. He was finally getting what he wanted in getting Naruto serious enough and that girl was trying to ruin it!

"Shut up, you annoying bitch! I want him like this!" he shouted harshly over his shoulder at Ino, who flinched visibly with a hurt expression. Another drop in temperature showed Sasuke it was one more wrong thing to say in front of Naruto. Getting nervous, he turned back to Naruto and managed to not flinch at his icy blue eyes getting even colder and his somewhat neutral expression turning into a menacing scowl.

"That idiot's fucked. Not only his mom, but he just had to talk bad about one of his friends!" Kiba groaned out loud at Sasuke's stupidity. Ino and Hinata held each other and prayed that Naruto wouldn't get in trouble from this.

"Oi, Iruka-sensei. It seems, in my rush to get off the ring, I didn't properly hear the exact rules for this spar." Naruto neutrally asked the still disappointed Iruka who had to turn his attention away from the raven-haired idiot. Naruto's icy blue eyes were still burning holes into Sasuke's eyes. Iruka sighed as he observed his favorite blonde's stature. He was ready to rip something apart and a perfect target presented itself in the form of the Uchiha boy. He knew he should stop this before it even began but he had a feeling they would have moved to an unsupervised location and things would get worse there. Therefore, he would allow this and do his best to keep Sasuke in one piece.

"Ok boys, I want a clean fight. This is a taijutsu spar. No ninjutsu or weapon allowed! This spar will end with a knock-out, forfeit, my judgement, or if one of you has been pushed out of the sparring ring."

"Understood, Iruka-sensei. So as long as he's conscious and remains inside the ring, I can keep going. That's good to know." Naruto said ominously with a feral grin that made a bead of sweat go down Sasuke's neck. Iruka sighed in disappointment at Sasuke's conduct this day before raising his hand high into the air.

"Begin!" he shouted before jumping back. Surprisingly, Naruto didn't immediately go into full attack mode. He just started walking silently and calmly toward Sasuke, his icy glare still locked on the doomed Uchiha. It was actually more unnerving this way to most people watching this spar unfolding.

"Oi, did you see Naruto adjust his seal quietly just before he turned back to Sasuke-san?" Shikamaru cut in as he and Choji stepped in between between the unaware Ino and Hinata, making them jump slightly and Ino swatted his head lightly.

"Shika! Don't scare us like that!"

"Ano...did you say he adjusted his seal?"

"Oh damn, he turned it off!? That moron is in even worse trouble!" Kiba's voice cut in as he and Shino joined the rest.

"No, he didn't. I read his lips. He said three, not 'kai' or even one." Choji reported for all. He also wasn't holding any bag of chips, showing how serious he was about this situation.

"So the reason he's walking calmly despite his expression looking like he would rip that idiot apart at any moment is because he slowed himself down that much?" Ino was the one to say what everyone was thinking.

"Ano...it looks like it. Naruto-kun is still giving Sasuke-san a shot despite his displeasure with what was said." Hinata said as she watched Naruto with hope that this wouldn't go too far after all. Just to be safe, she activated her Byakugan to make sure there was nothing funny from Sasuke.

"Troublesome...as long as he's smart enough to take advantage of that handicap like a shinobi should, and not rush straight in, he'd win easily." Shikamaru commented. As if to prove him otherwise, Sasuke had enough of being glared at by Naruto and snapped when he dashed in full speed with his right fist drawn back in a frontal assault.

"And what if he did just that?" Shino cut in crisply as Shikamaru let out a long sigh.

"Then, to copy Kiba from earlier...the idiot's fucked."

Sasuke was speeding toward the slowly moving Naruto with his fist drawn back. He knew he was telegraphing this punch but it was a feint anyway. As he neared the blonde, he withdrew his right fist and quickly transitioned into a left roundhouse kick without missing a beat. Naruto didn't look surprised at all as he calmly watched all of this happen. The foot connected with Naruto's head with a solid thwack and it gave an inch or two before stopping the foot completely. However, he barely felt that one. His right temple bled a little but he paid that no mind at all.

Sasuke was so surprised by how easily the blonde absorbed his kick that he just left his foot up while Naruto reached up with his right hand and firmly gripped the ankle. Sasuke, in shock at the sudden grip, tried to jump back but was held in place as if he was rooted to the spot. Naruto, still holding on to the foot, pulled Sasuke in, making him hop forward once on his free foot until the blonde was right in his face. Sasuke was too busy using his arms to balance himself to retaliate. Naruto chuckled lowly in a menacing way that sent absolute dread down Sasuke's spine.

"You stupid ass. I handicapped myself to avoid accidentally hurting you badly, or even kill you. If you had just calmly analyzed my movement and took advantage like a shinobi should, you'd have won easily. I had a feeling you wouldn't, though. Now, this is for insulting my mother!" Naruto spat out the last sentence venomously as he drew his left arm back. Even with level three from his resistance seal, he managed to unleash a fast and hard uppercut that sank deep into Sasuke's stomach with a loud thud heard throughout the sparring ring. The Uchiha's body folded like a piece of paper as it rose high into the air on Naruto's rising fist. The blonde then lowed his arm, putting a groaning and gasping Sasuke back on his now shaky foot. He let out a pained retch as he wobbled around, almost unable to keep standing while he was still had his other foot gripped in Naruto's right hand.

"Let go of my foot!" Sasuke gasped out through the pain.

"Sure!" Naruto chirped with fake cheeriness and he complied by tugging the Uchiha in toward him, getting him off-balance, before suddenly releasing so he would stumble straight into a waiting right fist that connected with his cheek. The audience oohed at how Sasuke's face contorted grotesquely around Naruto's fist and the loud crack that resulted. The raven-haired boy was sent flying to the other side of the ring.

"And that was for calling Ino-chan a bitch!" Naruto yelled. In the crowd, Ino covered her face with her hands as if to hide her embarrassment but she was hiding a brilliant smile instead. A grinning Hinata wasn't fooled as she gently elbowed Ino in her ribs, making her squeak and jump slightly.

Naruto, now adopting an indifferent expression with his hands in his pockets, started walking slowly toward the dazed Sasuke who was still struggling to even get on all four. He shook off his daze and his vision cleared enough to notice he was only a foot away from the sparring ring's boundary. A traitorous thought occurred to him; he would lose by deliberately stepping out but it'd get him away from these painful attacks. The person who doled out these painful attacks seemed to have read his mind.

"Go on. I don't care about about this anymore but I will continue if you decide otherwise." Naruto's calm voice cut into Sasuke's thoughts as he stopped and stood above the struggling Uchiha. Any thought of stepping out left the raven-haired boy immediately and his hands clenched at the dirt with this humiliation. Using everything he had, he shot up to his feet quickly, hoping to surprise Naruto as he lashed out with a right hook at the blonde's face. Naruto just swayed his head enough to let the right slip by harmlessly, and Sasuke overextended until his face was inches from his opponent's now.

"Your choice." Naruto intoned lazily before Sasuke's world exploded in nothing but agony as he got a crushing headbutt to his now broken nose. He cried out as he clutched at his bloodied face and stumbled backward a little, his feet just inches from the ring's boundary. Meanwhile, Naruto slowly drew his right leg up with the knee touching his chest, as if to cock it, and sprang it outward with full force. His foot smashed into Sasuke's chest hard and loud, fracturing a few ribs in the process. Everyone watched the 'elite' Uchiha fly out of the ring like a low-flying missile for a good ten meters before he landed harshly and tumbled to a stop. Throughout this entire exchange, Naruto never bothered taking either of his hands out of their pockets. After slowly lowering his fully extended leg to the ground, Naruto looked over his shoulder at a stunned Iruka as if to remind him of something. The sensei shook out of his daze and sighed in relief that the blonde didn't do too much to the Uchiha boy.

"Winner by ring out, Uzumaki Naruto!"

That was enough to send all the crowd into an uproar. Most of them cheered Naruto for teaching the Uchiha a lesson. After Sasuke's awful words earlier, not many of his remaining supporters wanted to speak out in his defense at the moment. Sakura was strangely silent as she seemed to be contemplating something, not even giving the laid out Uchiha a glance. Naruto nodded his thanks to the crowd as he began walking back to Hinata and the others.

"YOU...you...I won't stand for this HUMILATION! I have to get stronger to kill that man and you will not stand in my way!" an insane voice roared out from behind him. Naruto turned his head around nonchalantly to see Sasuke struggling to his feet.

"Naruto-kun! He's gathering chakra in his lungs! It looks to be fire-natured!" Hinata's voice called out warningly. The blonde widened his eyes in alarm. If Sasuke aimed a jutsu in his direction and he dodged it, it would hit those behind him, including his friends. He quickly turned around in a ready pose. Sasuke, with an insane expression on his face now, was bringing his hands up to slowly form seals and his cheeks started to balloon, a clear sign of a katon jutsu. Naruto was already running toward Sasuke, momentarily encumbered by his resistance seal before he brought his hands up into the special seal.

_**We'll need to get in close to stop whatever he was trying so be careful. Please try not to kill him as well. We don't need the hassle from the fallout that would follow. **_Kurama advised from inside, genuine concern in her tone.

_He's trying to use a lethal jutsu on me. You're asking a lot of me to not kill him right now but fine. No guarantee I won't permanently cripple him though. _Naruto thought as he quickly released his seal with a shout of 'Kai!' and his body instantly felt featherlight. He didn't take the time to enjoy the sensation as he dashed forward in a burst of speed that only the chunin Iruka and Mizuki followed. Sasuke was putting together a horse seal, the second to last in the seal sequence for his **Great Fireball** jutsu when he was shocked by Naruto suddenly appearing in his face.

That shock turned to agony when the blonde quickly reached out with his left hand and trapped Sasuke's interlocked fingers with a grip hard enough that crackling bones were heard. Naruto's right hand then shot out to grab Sasuke's jaw in a vice-like grip and harshly forced his head up to face skyward. At that point, the pain of his fingers being crushed together was enough to make Sasuke scream, expelling all of the fire chakra he built up inside prematurely. He released it in an harmless explosion of flame up into the air. At least harmless to the bystanders, as Sasuke didn't get away from the premature release scot-free with his slightly charred tongue and lips. He sank to his knees, his head still locked skyward due to his jaw still being gripped by Naruto and his entire body was in total agony now. He feebly shifted his gaze from the blue sky down into Naruto's ice blue eyes and the blonde looked murderous.

"First, you insult my mother and my friends. I was willing to let that slide when I got a few good licks in against you. However, this is is too much. If you had gotten that fire jutsu off and I dodged it, it would have hit people behind me instead. You willingly put them in danger for your wounded pride!" he growled out menacingly as he drew his left arm back, his hand shaped like a spearhead. Meanwhile, the stunned crowd around the two felt some pressure build in the air and it made them uncomfortable. Iruka widened his eyes before he looked over at Mizuki and was relieved his assistant didn't seem to have noticed it yet. However, if the pressure got any higher and denser, it would feel familiar to anyone who lived through the Kyuubi attack twelve years ago. He hoped Naruto kept calm enough to not let his control slip further, or he would get into trouble. The boy couldn't afford rumors spreading that he was letting the Kyuubi take over or something ridiculous like that. Right now, all the two instructors could do was dash toward the two boys as fast as they could, but they weren't going to reach them in time.

"I'm going to make sure you don't ever get to be a shinobi right now." Naruto declared coldly as his grip on Sasuke's jaw tightened and his raised left hand stiffened further. Feeling the full brunt of the pressure pressing down on him and seeing the deadly-looking spear hand Naruto was aiming at him, Sasuke squeezed his eyes shut as he awaited his execution.

A loud whoosh of a large body slipping through the air followed by a heavy thud of feet landing nearby gave him slight hope. The pressure lifting instantly and loud exclamations from the crowd around him raised his spirit enough to open one eye slightly. He was surprised to see a tall and buff white-haired man, wearing an outfit that looked like a mixture of shinobi and kabuki styles, standing nonchalantly next to Naruto with his large right hand wrapped firmly around Naruto's trembling left forearm, stopped inches from its intended target. Naruto didn't give the man any notice as he stared coldly at Sasuke, refusing to release his jaw.

"Oi...let the punk go. He doesn't know what he's doing." the white-haired man gently ordered of the blonde though he made his displeasure with Sasuke known by aiming his sharp glare at him. He had heard the boy's words earlier after all.

"He's not going to learn and he'll do something like this again. He also called mom a whore." Naruto shot back coldly, his icy blue eyes still boring into Sasuke's onyx orbs. The battered Uchiha got the feeling they were arguing over if it was okay to put down a rowdy dog or not rather than discussing taking a human life, and that made him feel even more humiliated.

"If you go any further than this after the official end of this spar, it would be assault by law. You're still a civilian and you can be tried by the civilian council with no interference from Sarutobi-sensei. This little shit's not worth going to jail for anything. You wouldn't want your friends to be unhappy without you around, would you?" the older man said, his tone going from gentle to cold. That hit Naruto right where it hurt when he finally turned his head to the tall man with a scowl.

"That's a low blow, _Jiraiya-sama_." the polite title seemed to hit the Toad Sage where it hurt too and he let out a sigh.

"I know. Now drop the damn kid and let him get treatment."

Naruto finally complied and let Sasuke go, who was now completely gobsmacked that the man standing there was one of the Legendary Sannin and he was carrying on a conversation with the blonde as if they were old buddies. At that moment, the tall man let go of Naruto's forearm and turned to the stunned crowd.

"Oi! One of you instructors who were totally useless during that entire incident should at least do something about the Uchiha boy!" Jiraiya barked out sharply. It finally jolted Mizuki into action as he gently collected the shell-shocked Sasuke and led him into the academy building toward the medic's office. With Sasuke out of sight, Iruka walked up to the pair and bowed formally to Jiraiya.

"We're so sorry that someone as esteemed as you had to step in to stop a schoolyard brawl. Forgive our uselessness. It all happened so fast we barely reacted, Jiraiya-sama."

"Nothing to be done about that now and it didn't go any further. I'm glad I decided to stop by here to see how the new generation was doing and maybe inspire at least one boy to adopt my way." the Toad Sage said with a laugh. Naruto being his student wasn't public knowledge yet and he wanted to keep it that way if he could help it, at least until the blonde graduated. Despite that, he came here to check on him since it's been a while since the last time they saw each other.

"You mean the way of the pervert." Naruto retorted with a grin, already forgetting about what just happened with Sasuke. He was happy to see his godfather again after so long, after all.

"Naruto! You should treat Jiraiya-sama with respect! He's one of the Legendary Sannin!" Iruka leaned in and whispered fervently to Naruto. Naruto just held his hand up to stop his sensei from talking more.

"Wait for it." he said mysteriously just as Jiraiya laughed boisterously and brought his hands up in front of him. Iruka suddenly had a bad feeling.

"No...the way of the SUPER pervert!" he declared loudly for all assembled, his fingers wiggling perversely. This made all females in the area involuntary take a step back and the males look at him in either awe or deadpan. Naruto was amused to note Kiba was one of the few awed by Jiraiya's display. Iruka sweat-dropped.

"How did you know Jiraiya-sama was going to do that?"

"Send everyone but my friends away and I'll explain. It's time I revealed something to you guys." Naruto said as his eyes seemed to show he had decided on something at that moment.

"I need to have a quick chat with Ero-sennin beforehand though." he called out as he walked over to the still-laughing Jiraiya, leaving behind a confused Iruka to do what Naruto asked.

"Oi, Ero-sennin!" the blonde called out loudly, making Jiraiya face-fault to the crowd's laughter.

"Oi, my ass! You should treat your elders with respect, you brat!" Jiraiya shot back after quickly getting back up.

"We need to talk." Naruto whispered. Jiraiya's face took on a serious expression for an instant before adopting a suave grin.

"It looks like at least one boy has decided to take my advice on how to crush men and woo women!" he announced, making Naruto face-fault this time. The amused crowd watched Naruto and Jiraiya bicker back and forth until they stood far enough out of everyone's earshot. Iruka picked that moment to herd his students away, asking Hinata, Ino, Shikamaru, Choji, Shino, and Kiba to remain behind.

"It's good to see you and thanks for jumping in when you did, Ero-sennin." Naruto said contritely as he peeled off a piece of flesh-colored paper stuck to his left forearm.

"The fox's not going to be happy having all her chakra in my system forced back into her suddenly, though." he added as he flipped the paper over, revealing a chakra suppressing seal drawn on it, and studied it for a moment. At this time, there was a rush in Naruto's head as the severed mental link with a slightly annoyed demon fox restored itself.

_**Fucking goddamn it! That old pervert did it again, didn't he!? Tell him to get his ass in here and I'll show him how 'gently' I suppress a human like him! **_Kurama roared after she got over the discomfort of having her chakra forced back into her all at once and then having it drawn out again when Naruto's chakra flow was restored to normal. Naruto grimaced as she continued to rant.

"She say anything nice about me, gaki?" Jiraiya slyly said with a grin at Naruto's face.

"Yeah, considering you like having your nads stomped on by angry women, she's saying very nice things about what she was going to do with your equipment." he deadpanned.

"Oi. For the last time, I'm not a masochist!" the older man defended.

"By the way, what're you doing here a week early?" the younger man completely ignored Jiraiya's indignation.

"I have to report something to sensei and do some fuijutsu business. Then I figured I'd catch up on my research on this village's young and supple beauties and enjoy relaxing a little." Jiraiya said with a leer on his idea of 'research'. Naruto nodded his acceptance at the explanation, not bothered he was just blatantly told his godfather was going to peek on naked women.

"If you're going to talk to Jiji-san, pass this on...Danzo had one of his minions tailing me for a few weeks. I don't know what for and I sent the guy packing in the end. I didn't tell him yet because I wanted to avoid giving Danzo a reason to cause trouble if he thinks I'm going to Jiji-san about that." Naruto had to admit he would never get used to his godfather's sharp glare since it was terrifying.

"Oh he did, huh? Good thing I told you about him. I never did like that old relic...thinkin' he's doing us all a favor by trying to destroy other villages for no reason other than to have Konoha be the only one left standing. Good job on being careful, gaki." Jiraiya praised but he still wasn't happy that Danzo had decided to take an interest in his godson after all. Naruto cleared his throat to move things along.

"Anyway, that wasn't why I got you out here to chat. I want to tell my friends. I'm tired of keeping secrets from them and I know I can trust them not to let any of my secrets out to the public."

"Ok, sure."

"Now I know it's difficult for you and Jiji-san to accept this but I promise-"

"Gaki, I said okay already." Jiraiya interrupted with clear amusement in his voice. Naruto was confused for a second before his eyes lit up.

"I can? That easily?"

"Sarutobi-sensei said since I am legally your godfather, I get a say in whatever personal secrets you can reveal or not. It's not all up to him anymore, even the one about the Kyuubi. Of course he strongly recommended any of this was to be kept discreet for your safety and this village's." he was about to say more when he was tackled by Naruto around his waist in a hug.

"Thank you, Jiraiya! You have no idea how relieved I am about this." Naruto calling Jiraiya by just his name made the older man warm and fuzzy on the inside but he wasn't about to admit that to anyone.

"Oi, get off before it gets too sappy." he grumbled good-naturedly before they broke apart and walked back to Naruto's assembled friends and Iruka.

"Everyone! I want to introduce you guys to one of my sensei, Jiraiya of the Legendary Sannin, also known as the Super Pervert." Jiraiya posed comically at the introduction to some laughter. His friends weren't surprised since he told them about Jiraiya earlier. However, Iruka was stunned beyond belief. He now understood why Naruto was so strong. The blonde checked the surroundings to ensure no eavesdroppers were around and cleared his throat.

"Also, he's my godfather appointed by my parents. Yes, I do know who they are and have known for a while." he added nonchalantly. Despite that, this was an absolute shock to everyone. Not even Hinata knew this yet. After a long moment of everyone mulling over this new information, Shino, of all people, tersely cut into the silence. Everyone, even Jiraiya, was surprised at the normally stoic boy's directness.

"I-i-if he was appointed as your godfather by your parents, then did that mean they were close to him?"

"They were like my son and daughter." Jiraiya replied sadly in fond remembrance. This only made Shino even more unsettled, as evidenced by a low buzz emitting from the hive of bugs inside his body.

"Excuse me for a moment, please." he said abruptly before walking away to a nearby batch of trees. Everyone stood in confused silence as they stared at him disappearing behind a tree. Silence reigned for a minute before it was broken by a high-pitched scream that made everyone flinch.

"DEAR KAMI, IT"S HIM! HE REALLY DOES EXIST!"

Dead silence followed the outburst for a long moment as everyone stared at the tree in shock when Shino reappeared from behind it, looking as stoic as before, and walked back to the bemused group and cleared his throat. His bugs were still buzzing lowly, apparently indicating his inner turmoil.

"F-f-father spoke of how close Jiraiya-sama was to one blond-haired male, who was his student, as well as a female who would be the student's girlfriend and eventual wife. I believe I may have figured out who Naruto-san's parents were and I am at a complete loss about why I didn't automatically link the woman's last name to Naruto-san's until now. He and Jiraiya-sama apparently agree with what I just said if their expressions were to indicate anything." The sober look on Naruto's and Jiraiya's faces confirmed Shino's words.

"Who were they?" Kiba solemnly asked, totally opposite from his usually loud and impatient tone. Choji and Shikamaru seemed to be coming to a conclusion in their minds and their eyes widened. Ino and Hinata held their hands up to their mouth, anxiously awaiting the revelation. Iruka's pupils shrank to tiny dots as he realized the connection, remembering a flash of long and beautiful red hair from when he was a kid.

"I was told the woman was Uzumaki Kushina, a famous kuniochi that was also known as 'Red Hot-Blooded Habanero' for her terrifying skills with fuijutsu, a special brand of jutsu called 'chakra chains', and her temper. The man-" Shino stopped at this point and took in a deep breath.

"The man was Namikaze Minato. As an apprentice of Jiraiya-sama, he became so powerful he would go on to almost single-handedly win the Third Great Shinobi War against Iwa and became a beloved hero to all of Konohagakure. After the war, he was known internationally as 'The Yellow Flash' and succeeded the Sandaime as the Yondaime Hokage."

At this point, thuds were heard as all but Jiraiya, Naruto, and Shino, who was buzzing loudly and barely standing, fell over in dead faint. Naruto palmed his face and let out a deep sigh while Jiraiya scratched his chin for a moment, not at all concerned about the unconscious bodies.

"Now that I see it, you're an Aburame, and if I'm correct from your physical traits, your father was Shibi-san?"

Shino could only nod once, not able to speak for now.

"I remember now! Minato mentioned he always came to your father for advice and considered him a good friend."

"A-advice? G-good f-friend?" That was too much for Shino. He fell backward and joined the others in a dead faint as well. Somehow he did it stoically with a rigid posture and his hands still in his coat's pockets. Naruto glared at a sheepish Jiraiya with an accusing expression.

"Were you trying to make sure ALL of them fainted, Ero-sennin?"

"I was just saying! The Aburame clan, for all their logic, always held a special place in their hearts for Minato. He never once looked at any of them as if they were freaks for using bugs and always worked closely with them. He was a big part of why many of this boy's clan are now included in tracking and hunting squads. Before then, they were viewed as very specialized, only known publicly for destroying Suna's Puppets Corps in the Second Great War since most of them just enlisted in the ANBU and slipped into obscurity for the rest of their lives. Minato brought the clan more into the spotlight and let people see what else they could do and they were all much better for it."

Naruto smiled proudly at yet another great deed done by his father. He looked over at his unconscious friends and chuckled softly.

"Wait till they hear about the fox." was all he said with a slightly worried grin. Jiraiya smiled and put a hand on his godson's head.

"It'll be ok." he assured sincerely.

**At the same time in the academy's medic office**

"There you go! You're a little banged up but you should be good as new after a couple days as long as you take it easy." a silver-haired part-time medic said cheerfully as he patted a hand on Sasuke's knee. Sasuke, who was half covered in bandages, just glared at him and only grunted as he slid off the medical table. He limped out without even a word of thanks.

"That arrogant ass." the cheerful medic's tone instantly turned dark. Mizuki, who was leaning against the wall by the office's door, shrugged as he closed it to talk privately.

"Oi, give him a break, Kabuto. He just got a thorough thrashing from the demon brat. I don't know why everyone won't see that brat's sudden increase in skills is a sign the Kyubi's forcing itself out finally." he said this as if it was nothing but the truth.

"Because you're a moron." Kabuto muttered quietly under his breath as he turned back to his desk and wrote down his observations of the Uchiha specimen on a separate and secret file to forward to his master. He smirked in satisfaction when he finished writing He knew his master would be very pleased with the fact Sasuke was easily susceptible to anger and thirst for power now. A perfect candidate for Orochimaru's new version of the cursed seal.

"So did you hear anything new about any of the students here over the past week?" Kabuto finally inquired of the nearly useless henchman standing behind as he continued to do his work at the desk.

"Nothing different except for one thing. I overheard some people talking about how that demon brat usually leaves the village for somewhere far away every summer. Good riddance, I say. Three months without him around each year is better than nothing." the blue-haired man spat out hatefully.

"I find it hard to believe they would let a jinchuuriki leave the village that long for any reason. Please tell me you at least know the reason." Kabuto muttered, already knowing Mizuki wasn't competent enough to dig up more information.

"No clue. It's hard enough talking about the demon brat in any way in this building without that old man breathing down our necks." he said with a shrug. The silver-haired man expelled a suffering sigh.

"We're done here. I have more work to do so get out." he said dismissively, not even bothering to care about the small scowl on Mizuki's face as the idiot stepped out of the office.

**Thirty minutes later at Kabuto's apartment**

Kabuto entered with a loud yawn, genuinely tired from his day's work. This was one of the few nights in which he didn't have to do any secret work for Orochimaru and just enjoy being a lone bachelor returning home from work to relax. However, that thought was ruined when he scowled upon feeling a presence in his apartment.

"Have you forgotten I have bad history with that bastard? I'm already itching to rip your body apart this very minute so hurry up and deliver your message before I send you back to your master in pieces." Kabuto called out with a homicidal expression forming and his hands were twitching at his sides.

The studio apartment was dark and somewhat sparse with a bed in one corner, a small kitchen and table in another, and an exercise area in the last one. A black-clad hand popped out of a shadow near the kitchen table to put a small scroll on it before it retreated into the shadow. Almost immediately after that, the presence disappeared from the apartment completely and Kabuto frowned at this sudden development. Root rarely contacted him directly and it was only done if they wanted to get something to Orochimaru quickly. Walking over to the table and picking up the scroll, he carefully checked it for any possible trap before finally opening it.

What he read on the scroll made his eyes go wider with each passing line. He smirked evilly at the end as he closed the scroll with a snap.

_How convenient that the information I wanted would just drop into my hands like this. Orochimaru-sama is going to want to know about this immediately. It's too bad this Uzumaki brat is for the other side. Being someone who got under Danzo's skin this easily, I would've gotten along well with him. _

**Hokage's office at around the same time**

"Yo, Sarutobi-sensei!" Jiraiya called out as he climbed into the office through an open window. Hiruzen Sarutobi looked up from paperwork on his desk and smiled.

"Jiraiya-kun! It's so good to see you again after last year. I hear you managed to stop a little schoolyard scuffle on the way here." the Third greeted as he leaned back into his chair. Jiraiya snorted loudly as he leaned against a wall next to the desk.

"A scuffle? Gaki was ready to cripple or kill the Uchiha spawn for real. I was going to let him after hearing that shitstain call his mother a whore and seeing that he was willing to put others at risk with his fire jutsu but then I remembered these pesky little laws." Jiraiya grumbled. Hiruzen frowned at the Uchiha's poor choice of words and actions today.

"I'll be reviewing the incident and I will hand out punishments to Sasuke-san over the summer break and dock pay from Mizuki-san for changing up the pairings without permission."

"Doubt that'll really teach them. Anyway, I'm not here for that. I came across some information I thought you need to know." Jiraiya's face turned grave. Hiruzen waved his hand dismissively and his ANBU guards moved out of the office before he activated a seal on the desk for privacy between him and Jiraiya, who grinned and spoke.

"Before we begin on that, I thought I should tell you I allowed gaki to tell his friends and Umino-san his secrets."

"I see. Thank you for telling me."

"You were a lot more nervous the last time we talked on this topic. Now you're strangely calm, sensei." Jiraiya observed with a raised eyebrow. The old man let out a sigh as he steepled his hands on the desk.

"I've had some time to think about this. With Naruto-kun getting strong so fast, he'll be chunin before we know it and I'll be required by Minato-kun's and Kushina-chan's will to pass their possessions on to that boy. At that point, the cat'll be out of the bag anyway. The only real worry from all of this is Iwa's reaction. However, we're now back to full strength military-wise and we would be able to stand up to any nation now. Plus, the mental blow of an offspring of the Yellow Flash having had time to grow up and come into his own as a powerful shinobi will be almost too much for Iwa's morale from the very onset. Onoki-san's a famous fence-sitter for a reason. If he doesn't feel the mood to be in his favor, he usually wouldn't do anything no matter how much his entire village calls for Naruto-kun's head. As long his friends keep it quiet and this doesn't spread like wildfire, Naruto-kun should be okay until he's good and ready for the world to throw anything at him in a few years."

"You make good points, sensei. When all of this comes out, you want to make a bet the gaki won't blow his top when we tell him he'll be allowed and _strongly_ encouraged to take on multiple wives since he needs to pass on the Uzumaki traits and restore his clan?" Jiraiya said with an evil grin. Hiruzen chuckled.

"No, I know a fool's bet when I see one." the two men smiled before they sighed.

"How did Naruto-kun's friends take it?" the Third queried.

"They were upset that gaki was being hated for something so stupid."

"Indeed. There are times when I felt the younger people are smarter than the older and more experienced people." Hiruzen said sagely with a proud smile for the maturity of Naruto and his friends. A moment of silence descended on the office. The Toad Sage then sighed loudly before he became all business.

"Moving on to more serious matters. I came across some worrying information in Land of Earth about a powerful mercenary group taking up some nasty missions for the Tsuchikage and they were completing them easily at an alarming rate." Jiraiya's expression became grim.

"Sounds like any other top-rate mercenary group. I assume that's not all there it is to them, however."

"According to the rumors I heard, they comprise of S-rank missing nin and they're linked to the bijuu in some ways. They're trying to increase their funds rapidly by taking on missions no one sane would want. Hebi-teme used to be part of this group for a short time before I heard he betrayed them. They're now frantically hunting him down since he has something that belongs to them."

"That's something different. What do they want with the bijuu?"

"I don't know, but I will tell you right now. A group of S-rank missing nin having something to do with even just one of the bijuu, let alone more? Nothing good will ever come out of that." Jiraiya said gravely with his eyes set in a sharp glare.

"Should we warn Naruto-kun?" Sarutobi said wearily with a sigh. Jiraiya shook his head.

"Gaki should focus on being a kid for just a little while longer. Right now this is just mostly rumors and I'd rather wait till I confirm this group and its ultimate goal before I go to the gaki with this. He will need to know soon, no question about that. Just not right now."

"Anything else?" Hiruzen encouraged.

"Gaki told me that he had a tail on him for a few weeks a while back. He said he sent the guy packin' and it turns out he was sent by your old teammate." Jiraiya had to consciously force himself to not step back under his sensei's sharp glare.

"Danzo sent someone after Naruto-kun?" Hiruzen repeated, his voice rough.

"It looked like it was just to gather information if nothing else. Gaki said he didn't want to tell you directly and risk any unpredictable reaction from Danzo."

"Ah, that's why he hasn't been by lately." the Third concluded, his expression showing he did not like Danzo interfering with Naruto's regular visits to his office. They usually brightened his days. He let out a sigh and stood up to walk over to a file cabinet.

"We'll worry about that soon enough. For now, I have to read this report and then go to an emergency shinobi council meeting later this evening to discuss a mission that went wrong. You're welcome to come along as a stand-in guard if you'd like to listen in. Perhaps you may have heard something from one of your spies." Hiruzen offered as he began to gather some folders and a small rectangular object into his hands.

Jiraiya was an old-school shinobi, but he recognized that object as a mission recorder that seamlessly attached to any shinobi's radio unit. It was a new technology that came to Konoha only a year or so ago. It also was so expensive only commanders carried them and only on dangerous missions. It was the best option that way since all radio communication in a squad was routed through the commander's unit. The device then would record up to the last hour of radio chatter. It was useful for investigators dealing with incidents on missions and when they were lucky enough to recover the recorder one way or another after failed missions resulting in total loss of life.

"Must have been a major issue on this particular mission to call the council together. Is it someone I know?" Jiraiya furrowed his eyebrows upon seeing his sensei's grave expression.

"It was completed but out of the five we sent out, only one person came back alive with minor injuries. It's Anko-chan."

**On a street in Konoha in the evening**

"Why don't you come right up to Naruto and tell him what you really think, huh?!" Ino snarled fiercely at yet another villager that glared at Naruto with hatred. The villager recoiled in shock at being called out and scampered off. Naruto sighed as he watched Ino and Kiba glare and growl at every villager that even looked their way. Hinata, Shino, Shikamaru, and Choji were quietly walking behind Naruto but they were also giving off their own chilly dispositions toward all the villagers around them.

"Sometimes I wonder if I did the right thing by telling you." he said with an half-amused and half-exasperated expression.

"Of course you did! We finally understand what's going on with you! Now that we know, we don't want you to put up with any more bullshit you don't deserve from these people!" Kiba said hotly.

"Not even the Kyuubi deserves all the blame if what you said happened that night was true." Ino added in a whisper. Naruto smiled gratefully at his friends' protectiveness.

"Kiba, Ino, and everyone else...thank you but I grew up with these looks. I'm used to them. I don't even notice them until you guys started acting up on my behalf. It's honestly not hurting me or anything now."

"But it's not fair, Naruto! You're the-" Ino was stunned into silence by a sharp glare from Naruto.

"Please do not finish that out here in the public, Ino-chan. Just as most of the people here think I don't deserve to be here, they do not deserve to know where I truly came from until it's time. Do not give them any excuse to turn around and beg me for 'my forgiveness' just because my father was _him_. I don't need that crap, please."

Ino snapped her mouth shut and nodded demurely. Kiba seemed to have gotten the message too as he started to silently walk next to Naruto. The blonde sighed.

"I knew this was going to take some adjustment for you and I'm sorry I snapped like that, guys. I may be _their_ son but I'm sure even if they were alive, they would tell me to be my own person. I don't need you guys acting like I'm the son of two famous nin who automatically deserves the entire village bowing at his feet until their knees bleed. I need you to be Uzumaki Naruto's friends and nothing else. You're the reason the looks I'm getting from these idiots aren't bothering me at all. I'm happy with you guys and that's all I want." he assured his now beaming friends. Well, almost all of them were beaming while Shino just nodded his head curtly. Ino and Hinata hopped on Naruto with their bone-crushing hugs while the boys watched with grins.

"I'm starving! Let's go eat at the ramen stand!" Naruto announced as he got out of the girl's clutches and sped off toward the stand with his friends close behind.

**A hour later at the ramen stand**

"Alas, I must go, my love, or you would tempt me so and break my steely resolve otherwise. I shall return for you in a few days time after I have had time to recover from being in your presence." Naruto muttered lovingly to a stack of empty ramen bowls with his hands held together in a prayer. A grinning Ayame with pink cheeks was watching this with great amusement as she leaned on the counter across from him.

"You know, Naruto-kun, if you had said that to me instead, I would've fallen for you. You may be able to get a ramen cook as your girlfriend." she teased. Naruto chuckled as he pushed the bowls aside.

"I'm flattered and thank you for that and your wonderful cooking as usual. However, I think with your beauty and your cooking, it may be too much of a good thing for me and I'll die early. Happy but too early." he replied in a teasing tone with a genuine smile as he took his Gama-chan out to pay. He didn't notice the young woman's cheeks darkening further. A minute later, he was waving bye to Ayame and Teuchi as he made his way back to his apartment alone since his friends had already left in a group for their homes in the clan district. Naurto made his way into his apartment building.

_Well, Kurama, this has been a long day but I'm glad things went well. All my friends now know and they're okay with it._

_**You also handled that Uchiha bastard nicely. Your training is going well.**_

Naruto beamed as he climbed up the stairs to his apartment before he nearly face-faulted off the steps upon Kurama's next words.

_**However, I haven't forgotten how you questioned my gender once again. I will be riding your ass hard tonight! **_Naruto grimaced while the demon fox fell silent as she smacked a hand to her face.

_That...might not be the best choice of words to use with the context of this conversation. _

_**Just shut up and get home. **_was all Kurama muttered out.

Naruto smiled as he reached his floor but the smile dropped when he noticed an odd shape in front of his door. He became instantly alert because the hallway was dimly lit and he couldn't make out the shape yet. He silently took a kunai out of his leg holster and held it loosely behind his leg. He silenced his steps and slowed his breathing. He then made himself as small a target as possible when he shifted his body sideway and almost pressed his back to the wall on the opposite side from his door. He then inched closer to the shape, keeping it in his sight at all time as he glanced around and up for any ambush or trap.

_Get ready to pump your chakra into me if I have trouble. It'd alert all the shinobi in this village to here. _

_**That'd be a good idea if this was a real threat. Sniff a bit harder and you'll recognize the scent. **_Kurama pointed out.

Confused at her words, he let himself focus on his sense of smell. Mixed in with the usual stagnant scents of the hallway, there was a fresh soapy scent and he realized there was a familiar scent of snakes mixed in. Relaxing his guard a little, he got close enough to find it was Anko sitting with her back against his door, legs tightly drawn up to her chest with her arms wrapped under the knees, and she was rocking back and forth a little bit with her face down and shaded. She was dressed in a simple dark blue t-shirt and a pair of plaid flannel pants. She apparently just got out of the shower from the clean scent he smelled off her. He also noticed her damp hair was down, much to his secret delight. His favorite physical feature on Anko was always her beautiful purple hair and it put him in a good mood whenever she left it down.

"Very good. You made sure to stay alert and prepared everything correctly in order to minimize the danger to you in case this was a trap." her dull voice cut into Naruto's thoughts as she praised his alertness. Her face was still hidden.

"Anko-chan! You're finally back! I missed you, you know." Naruto said happily as he put his kunai away and stepped forward. That was the last thing he did before he was violently slammed against the wall by Anko's arm across his chest and her other hand was suddenly holding the same kunai he just put away against his neck, ready to slice. Before he could wonder how she snatched that kunai without him noticing, he was stunned by an expression of pure rage on her face.

"A-anko-chan?" he refused to believe his friend would actually do anything to him so he moved on to thinking about the reason for her distress. He also knew the rage he was seeing wasn't directed at him but at the world in general since he recognized the same look he saw in the mirror from when he was younger.

"You shouldn't let your guard down! What if I betray you!? What if I think you'll betray me?!" Anko shouted as her expression changed from rage to desperate paranoia as she still held the kunai up to Naruto's neck, although it was trembling now.

"Anko-chan, something's happened during this mission you just did, didn't it?" Naruto whispered gently and he knew he got it right when Anko flinched violently. Her crazed light brown eyes focused on him as if she was seeing him for the first time this evening. She lowered her gaze and chuckled weakly in a dull tone before he felt the kunai move away from his neck and her arm pinning his chest was trembling now. He slowly brought his hands up to show he wasn't doing anything as he watched her face contort and change through a mixture of raw emotions before it finally settled on pure despair and she raised the kunai once again, poised to strike. Her eyes became crazed again as she shifted her gaze back up at Naruto's.

"The fuckers gave me up as sacrifice! The same people who I worked with for weeks and actually made me think they were decent turned around and STABBED me in the back without a second thought! Every single one of them did it with a smile and they had no goddamn remorse until they were slaughtered a few seconds later!" she whispered frantically into Naruto's stunned face as she loudly sunk the kunai into the wall next to Naruto's head when she spat out 'stabbed'. He didn't pay that any mind as he tried to make sense of what could have happened to her.

"Whoever they were, they're not here anymore because they're dead. Instead, I"m here and it's okay, Anko-chan. You have nothing to worry about with me." Naruto gently said as he slowly moved his right hand up and patted gently on her arm pinning him. Anko flinched at the touch but seemed to calm down as she let out a choked sob and threw the kunai to the floor with a clatter before releasing him. She stumbled back clumsily with a dead expression and was about to sink to her knees when Naruto quickly moved to support her with an arm around her waist.

"Let's go in and I'll give you some of my tea. You'd like that, right? We'll talk when you're ready." he said soothingly and Anko nodded weakly. He then opened his door and went in with the listless woman in his arms.

**At around the same time in a secure meeting room**

A double door opened to admit Hiruzen Sarutobi and his most trusted student, Jiraiya. The large room fell silent as everyone already in the room all stood at attention for their leader while the door closed and locked with a click.

"At ease." the Third said succinctly as he briskly walked to and took his seat at the end of the long and well-lit conference table in the middle of the room. Everyone else then took their seats and Jiraiya silently stood guard to the right and behind the Hokage, his eyes searching the room. The entire shinobi council was in attendance as Jiraiya noted the clan heads from Hyuuga, Yamanaka, Aburame, Akimichi, and Inuzuka. In addition, there were the commanders from the three main branches of the military; the secretive Dragon of ANBU, the scarred and grizzled Morino Ibiki of Intelligence, and Nara Shikaku the Jounin Commander of the main force. Shikaku actually was here in double capacity as the Commander and as the Nara clan head. To round out the assembly, Hiruzen's old teammates, Homura Mikokado and Koharu Utatane sat on both sides of the Hokage as his advisors.

"Jiraiya, I didn't know you were back in the village." Koharu observed from her seat as she noticed the tall man behind Hiruzen.

"Hello, Koharu-san. I came back here for other business but sensei here invited me along by chance. He believes I may have some insight to offer into the subject of this meeting." Jiraiya greeted with a polite smile.

"I trust none of you would mind Jiraiya-kun being here?" the Hokage spoke with a gentle smile but everyone at the table knew what he really meant behind that smile.

_'If you actually have any issue with that, tough shit.'_

No one said anything as the Hokage took out some files in a folder that was sitting in front of him on the table. The others followed suit and took their own copies out of their folders as well. No one spoke for a few minutes with the crinkling of papers the only sound filling the room as all quickly read over their reports. The Third cleared his throat and began.

"I just read over a mission report from one Mitarashi Anko, who returned earlier today with minor injures. However, the four nin assigned to her for this mission were killed in action. We believe a major incident has occurred during this A-rank mission, which I commissioned to find and eliminate a large group of missing nin causing trouble near the capital." Hokage paused to let that set in for everyone and to see if there was any objection. He then continued.

"What I read and the loss of four of our men had me decide to call this meeting in order to go over the profiles of all five shinobi involved and discuss the mission's progress reports leading up to the incident. We will then discuss the evidence and I expect to hear any advice or objection as I decide what to do in the aftermath." he finished gravely as he looked each of the assembled council in the eyes.

"Hokage-sama, you mentioned Mitarashi-san just returned today. Don't we need some time to gather information and pieces of evidence if there were any? Yet you say we have enough already to hear the case this evening." Shikaku cut in politely. He knew there was a mission recorder involved and he wanted to establish that early in the meeting.

"Yes, I believe we have enough on the advice of Ibiki-san, who has looked over the evidence, a mission recorder, for any sign of tampering or falsehood. He has declared it completely genuine." the Third replied with a nod in the direction of the Intelligence head. Ibiki nodded back curtly. He was stoic on the outside but he was boiling with rage on the inside against the ones who hurt one of his favorite comrades.

"We should begin then. It seems like this may be a long night for all of us." Hiashi put in as some of the council nodded at the truth of that. Ibiki then took out a stack of folders.

"These are the profiles of the five that were involved in the incident. I believe we should establish their personalities before we discuss the evidence, which is a recording of radio communication recovered from this mission." he said gruffly.

"Should we trust this kind of gadgetry so quickly?" Homura cut in as he shifted a little uncomfortably. He was always distrustful of new technology. Koharu nodded her agreement.

"I did just establish Ibiki-san cleared the evidence to be entirely accurate. You are welcome to take it up with him if you'd like, however." the Hokage said with a half smirk. Homura and Koharu gulped when they received Ibiki's challenging glare and said nothing in the end.

"If there's nothing else, please begin, Ibiki-san." Hokage ordered as he leaned back in his chair with Jiraiya silently watching over the meeting.

"The first profile we have here is jounin Mitarashi Anko, who was born October 24 and her current age is eighteen. She was orphaned at one upon the deaths of her parents in an attack by Iwa as the Third Great War gained full momentum..."

**Naruto's apartment**

"Here you go." Naruto said gently as he put a cup of tea on the coffee table in front of Anko. He had to hold in a sigh at the sight of her. Anko hadn't said anything or moved a single inch from where he helped set her down on the living room couch. She truly looked like a breeze would knock her over.

Naruto slowly sat in a chair opposite the couch and he kept an eye on Anko. After what seemed like hours but only minutes passed, he was happy to note Anko slowly reaching out for her cup of tea. He silently watched her pick up the cup and bring it her lips for a sip. He grinned in victory as he watched Anko flutter her eyes closed and her expression clearly showed contentment at the taste. She let out a blissful sigh and seemed to be a somewhat revitalized.

"Mmm...I've always liked your tea. It's not the absolute best I ever tasted but there's something about coming home from a tough mission and enjoying tea with you like I've been doing over the past year. Kami, I really needed this after what just happened." she murmured as she sank back into the upper cushion of the couch and crossed her legs to get comfortable with her cup cradled in her hands.

"Thanks. Apparently something didn't go right."

"Ha! That's the understatement of the year. Everything was FUBAR." Anko scoffed as she took another sip.

"I realize I may not be the best person to talk to since I'm not even in the force yet. Is Yugao-san around? Maybe she can help." Naruto offered but Anko shook her head.

"She's out on a mission and even if she was around..." Anko mumbled at the end. But Naruto clearly heard it with his sensitive hearing and it made him smile inwardly.

'_I want to see you __either way.__' _

"I'll try to help any way I can." Naruto said sincerely as he sat back in his chair for a long talk. Anko smiled gratefully.

"Just listening is enough. Right now I feel like you, Yugao-nee, and Nai-chan are the only ones in the world that would never betray me." she said softly, with her eyes dulling slightly as she seemed to be remembering something.

"I've got all the time in the world for you right now. Just say whatever you'd like." Naruto said with an encouraging smile.

"I suppose I should start at the beginning. You know the old man told me to go after some missing nin comprised mostly of genin and chunin from various villages. They banded together up north and was causing troubles with raids on small villages around the capital. Old man told me to whittle down their number carefully and slowly over time. He gave me a squad of four guys. They were seasoned chunin who could handle most things as long as they worked together. I can't say their names now because of what happened and the old man ordered me to not reveal their identities. We met each other and you can imagine that things got a little tense between us because I'm the 'snake whore' and they're such upstanding and devoted nin concerned about the 'integrity' of the shinobi force. You know...the usual dance. Old man ordered us to work together and get over our differences since we knew this mission would take weeks." Anko paused with a shrug and took another sip of tea before continuing in what looked like fond remembrance.

"We had our little kinks to work out and even got into a row or two when they questioned my orders and I had to assert my rank. However, we eventually smoothed everything out and we worked together like a well-oiled machine. We started completing our objectives at a quick rate as we hunted down the missing nin. In the beginning, there were thirty-two of them. We cut that number down to thirteen over the past three weeks of careful planning and a surgical strike each time we split some of them from the herd. We laughed and ate together like old friends during the quiet times. I was beginning to like them and even thought it would be nice to work with them on more missions in the future. That all changed yesterday." Anko's expression darkened as she paused to take a breath. Naruto leaned in to listen intently.

**Council Room**

"We have established the personalities of the five involved in this incident. We also discussed the progress reports Mitarashi-san sent in over the course of the three weeks they were out on the field." Hiruzen summarized the progress of the meeting so far before continuing. "Is there anything any of you would like to add?"

"It sounded like a typical long-term mission for a five-man squad. Everyone had their differences according to the initial progress reports before they began to work together. They smoothed out their kinks by the end of the first week, however, and began completing their objectives at a good rate. Instead of the allocated six weeks, it looked like they would have completed the mission in just four. I have to say Mitarashi Anko makes a good squad commander if she was able keep her squad in order and moving along at a brisk rate, in spite of the general opinion of her." The masked ANBU Dragon spoke calmly, voice distorted by the mask. Only one person in the entire village knew Dragon's identity and that was the Hokage. Hiruzen frowned at Dragon's mention of Anko's unfortunate public opinion and mentally wondered how long it was going to take for people to forget Anko was the traitor Orochimaru's student.

"Indeed. It is hard to fathom that this incident happened the way it did from the report we read." Aburame clan head Shibi put in his opinion and the others quietly murmured their agreement. Hiruzen waved his hand at Ibiki who stood up and moved to a corner of the room to retrieve an electronic device. When he returned, he set it on the table for everyone to see. It was obvious from the visible speaker it was designed to play back a recording.

"This is why I called this meeting. Because of the conflict between the previous progress reports and the final mission report Mitarashi-san turned in today, we need to establish the truth once and for all with this recording." the Third explained as he retrieved the mission recorder from inside his haori and handed it to Jiraiya. The Toad Sage silently walked over to Ibiki and handed the recorder to him in full view of everyone. Ibiki then slowly pushed the recorder into a slot on the device. After a nod from the Hokage, Ibiki pressed play and the device came to life with a crackle.

"SW-Main, this is SW-01 reporting objective complete. We have two confirmed dead." a male voice filled the room. A snort was heard from Shikaku and everyone looked in his direction with inquisitive expressions.

"It seems Mitarashi-san has a sense of humor. Most squad leaders use their initials to form call signs among their squads. In her case, it would have been 'MA'. However, she's using 'SW', apparently from one of her more popular nicknames among the populace, 'Snake Whore'." he said with an amused smirk. Most of the council's jaws dropped at the sheer audacity while the Hokage slapped a hand to his forehead in exasperation. Jiraiya and Tsume were doing all they could to not laugh uproariously, Dragon's shoulders shook slightly, and Ibiki grinned with respect for his subordinate. It took a minute for everyone settle down and the recording was still playing but it was just radio banter for now. The recorder only automatically activated whenever there were chatter so weeks worth of radio communication were reduced to minutes for all assembled since the recording cut out the hours that normally passed between radio chatter. They listened for a few minutes and they could tell Anko and her men were getting along really well and they were efficiently completing their operations. If the incident hadn't happened, Hokage believed he would have assigned them to her often in the future. Finally they got to the important part and everyone fell deathly silent.

"SW-Main here. Sound check and confirmation from all. This is a recon mission. Do not engage any enemy you may see around the bunker. We are to only gather information today." Anko's voice ordered firmly.

"SW-01 confirms." which was followed by three other males' voices confirming their orders. Ibiki paused the device at this point.

"According to the report, they were casing an abandoned bunker from the Third Great War that was located thirty-five kilometer northwest of the capital, near the Earth border. They believed that bunker to either be the main base of operation or at least house several missing nin. They were investigating to confirm before taking further action. At this point, Mitarashi-san was controlling the operation from their hidden camp three kilometer away using an up-to-date map data while the four men investigated." he reported from his paper before resuming playback.

"SW-Main here. SW-01 and SW-03 are to move to grid K-7 on the east side of the bunker and find cover. Watch for any activity. SW-02 and SW-04, cover SW-01 and SW-03 from the shadows twenty meters behind." Anko's voice continued.

"Textbook recon procedure. Send two people close enough with two more watching their backs to avoid any chance of ambush from behind." Shikaku commented.

Normal radio banter followed with Anko regularly checking with each of her men and silently moving the team to different locations around the bunker. Apparently a lot of time has passed and SW-01 was starting to get impatient.

"SW-Main, SW-01 here and it's been hours, ma'am. We haven't seen anything out of ordinary. Maybe this is a dead end." an impatient male voice cut in.

"SW-01, maintain your position. We still have another two hours to go." Anko's slightly irritated voice returned immediately. The next chatter perked up the council's ears.

"SW-01 to all, activity detected. I see a man stepping out the main entrance to the bunker. He looks to be in his late teens with brown hair and a typical Kiri nin outfit." SW-01's voice sounded almost excited.

"SW-03 confirms sighting."

"SW-Main to all, maintain your positions. Keep quiet and observe."

"SW-01 to all, reporting. Another man has followed the first one out in a similar Kiri outfit and they're now smoking cigarettes."

"SW-03 confirms."

"A smoke break? Could use one myself." SW-04's voice muttered.

"SW-01 to all, a third man has come out in an Iwa outfit. I heard him joke he was getting lonely in there."

"SW-03 confirms both sight and sound."

"So there are only three here. We can take them easily, SW-Main."

"SW-Main to all, negative. This is recon only. Continue until the time is up and we'll plan accordingly afterward."

"SW-01 to Main, with all due respect ma'am, I don't see why we have to wait hours to eliminate them then rather than do it right now." this male's voice was becoming impatient again.

"I repeat, do not engage. This feels wrong and we need to be sure." Anko's voice rose slightly in alarm.

"SW-Main, sorry but that's bullshit. They're sitting ducks out there and we need to take advantage now! They may be joined by more later and we'll miss this chance." SW-01's voice growled out and the other men called in with their agreements. The people in the council room scowled at the blatant defiance. It was fine to make your opinion known but orders has to be followed nonetheless if the leader still won't change his or her mind.

"Why not just threaten them with insubordination?" Choza, head of the Akimuchi clan, chimed in.

"That's the wrong thing to say in the middle of an active high-tension mission. It would just increase their defiance and embolden them. At this point, they start thinking if what they did turned out alright, then they'd get off with a slap on the wrist. Threatening them would just piss them off. What you do instead is clearly order them to retreat to a safe distance to make them cool down and just hope to Kami they'll obey that at least." Ibiki replied crisply, his experience in psychology clear. As if to prove Ibiki right, Anko's terse voice filled the room.

"SW-Main to all, everyone is to withdraw quietly back to camp. This recon is over and we have enough information."

"No, I don't think so. I'm going to eliminate them now before they get back to the others. We'll finish our mission faster this way." SW-01's defiant voice cut in and three other male voices followed.

"This is when everything's gone to shit, apparently." Jiraiya muttered for everyone to hear. Solemn agreement went around. They heard Anko take a calming breath.

"SW-Main to all, I repeat, everyone is to withdraw right now." she managed to keep her voice calm but everyone knew she's lost them as there was no reply this time. Only dead silence and Anko's quickened breathing followed for a few minutes as she kept her radio on to hear for any slightest bit of sound. A loud static exploded into the room making everyone wince. The static eventually gave way to garbled voices that became clear.

"-a fucking ambush! They were waiting for us to kill those three before they jumped in!" one man's alarmed voice made everyone frown and there were sounds of explosions and metal clanging. They heard Anko's sharp intake of breath.

"They used them for bait! What kind of comrades does that?!" another man's voice cried as he fought off an enemy. There were more clanging and scuffling of feet with some cruel laughter echoing in from somewhere.

"Oi! I'm coming-" Anko's voice called out but was cut off.

"Wait! We surrender! Turn off your radios, guys!" SW-01's voice cut into the radio chatter loudly.

"What are you saying?!" Anko's confusion was apparent as three clicks were heard, meaning three of the radio units went offline.

"My radio's busted." SW-03's voice was heard somehow, meaning his 'busted radio' was picking up everything without them knowing.

Inoichi, head of the Yamanaka clan, held his hand up for Ibiki to briefly pause the playback.

"So that's what the static from earlier was about. Apparently that man's unit looked damaged to them but was actually permanently on. Do you have confirmation of this?"

"Yes, Mitarashi-san took the bodies back here after the incident and I checked their radio units. Three of them were deliberately switched off and the last one had the switch and earpiece torn off by a kunai strike but the mic was still picking up everything when I recharged the battery and checked. With the earpiece gone, there was no way that guy knew his unit was still active. I checked for any sign of tampering but Mitarashi-san never touched anything." Ibiki replied as he looked over his autopsy report. Inoichi nodded his acceptance of the report and let Ibiki continue playback.

"What the hell's going on?" Anko's voice muttered as she apparently was listening for anything on the other end. There were laughter and some fists striking flesh repeatedly followed by grunts and yells for a few minutes. There was an audible click from Anko's unit as she switched it to permanently on now.

"Need to keep this on." she whispered as clattering was heard from her end. It was apparent she was quickly gathering her supplies and getting ready to move.

"You took your sweet time killing most of us over the past three weeks. What makes you think we want to have you surrender?" a gruff man's voice echoed.

"I want to join you!" SW-01's voice was heard and Anko couldn't contain a gasp. Everyone in the council scowled as they heard the other men's agreement. Uproarious laughter filled the room for a moment.

"You guys may be good but it doesn't change the fact that you killed so many of us that only ten of us are left now! Whatever you say isn't going to be enough and we'll enjoy killing you slowly over next three weeks...the same amount of time you spent trying to slowly choke life out of us." the apparent leader of the missing nin growled menacingly.

"Okay. Weapons check. Scrolls check..." Anko mumbled to herself as she prepared to rescue her squad only to be stopped cold by what she heard on the radio.

"What if we have a kunoichi waiting for us back at camp?" SW-01 added. Now this stopped the laughter and chattering echoing over the radio and everything was silent. Anko's stunned gasp of disbelief wretched at some of the council's hearts and growls were heard in the room.

"Oh? Do tell." the leader's voice sounded really interested.

"That's why I had us turn off the radio. So she wouldn't hear this back at the camp and you guys can ambush her and have your way with her however much you want. We've been putting up with her for weeks trying to keep things friendly between us but we don't care about her. We're doing our now former village a favor by getting rid of her. Consider it a peace offering from us if you let us live and join you." SW-01's voice continued in a smooth tone. A weak thump was heard as it sounded like Anko sank to her knees on the ground in shock. The all-male band of missing nin started to cheer raucously at the prospect of nabbing a kunoichi, some of them commenting they were more fun to break than civilian women after all.

"Give me her name." the leader ordered.

"Mitarashi Anko." SW-02's voice supplied and there were scattered cheers as some of the missing nin apparently recognized the name.

"Ooh! She was recently added to the bingo book. I'll bet her picture doesn't do her justice in real life." the leader was talking with the captured males as if they were old friends.

"You have no idea. She's clearly one of the most beautiful women in our village and very feisty. She would be fun for you, I'm sure." SW-01's sinister grin was clearly felt in his voice as more of the missing nin cheered. Anko's voice cut in when she choked back a sob and slowly scuffled to her feet.

"Don't believe this..." she mumbled and there were clattering from her stumbling around the camp followed by some sniffling and small sobs. Even the most hardened people at the meeting felt their hearts break for Anko as they listened to her deal with and force down her feelings of betrayal in order to focus on the issue at hand.

"Tell us where she is and we'll forgive and forget." the leader requested. The traitors didn't even take a second to think before one of them replied.

"She's in a clearing three kilometer to the south of us. Near the river."

Ibiki had to stop playback at this point however due to an angry Inuzuka Tsume growling.

"They gave her up without a second thought to save their own asses! Even though she was the one that got them so far in this godforsaken mission with only few scratches!" she snarled as she displayed her clan's beastly traits in full force before she turned her fierce gaze on the grim-faced Third.

"They don't deserve to be shinobi of Konoha! Something will be done about this, right?!" the beautiful Inuzuka clan head growled.

"I believe we will work that out at the end of this meeting. Please continue." the Hokage sounded disappointed he wouldn't get to kill these four men with his own bare hands. Ibiki resumed playback once again while a still ferocious-looking Tsume forced herself to sit down.

"Great! Thanks for the information. Go ahead and kill them." the leader's cold voice ordered his cheering comrades.

"W-w-wait! We gave you the snake bitch! We agreed you'd let us go!" SW-01's voice screamed as the other three men cried like hysterical children as they struggled to get free. Ripping and spurting were heard as kunai savagely sliced three throats from ear-to-ear. There were gurgling and the sound of three bodies thumping on the ground. A fist struck flesh followed by the sound of SW-01 groaning.

"We never said we'd let you go. We said we'd forgive and forget and so we only let you off the three-week long torture session we promised." the leader's malicious voice hissed before one more slicing of flesh was heard. A fourth body hit the ground amid the missing nin's cheering.

"Guys! It's been a long and painful trial and we had to sacrifice three more for bait but we finally beat them! We also earned ourselves some kunoichi pussy for our troubles too! Let's go before she gets too far away!" the leader roared and a stampede was heard. The sound faded as all nin left the microphone's range on the broken radio attached to SW-03's cooling corpse. There was nothing but Anko's shallow breathing for what seemed like eternity to the council.

"I don't fucking believe this. Worked with them for weeks and they just give me up at first sign of trouble...fuck 'em. I should just let the bears in this forest eat and shit them out." Anko's rambling broke the long moment of silence, now more angry than shocked as she started to move around with more urgency. The council glanced at each other with alarm. She was preparing to face ten missing nin with only a few minutes of planning. That was beyond reckless! They were also reminded at this moment that they had never heard of how a truly furious Anko unencumbered by the curse mark's effects would do and they were about to find out.

"They want this pussy, do they? I'm going to make sure it's the very thing they'll curse before they die!" Anko's voice was so full of pure unadulterated hate it made some of the council wince. Now there were various sounds as she was apparently setting up traps quickly and hiding herself. Before long, voices started to get louder as the missing nin approached her position. The group quieted and grumbled when they didn't seem to find the kunoichi they were promised right away. The leader was in the middle of ordering his men to spread out when there was a sound of kunai slicing through flesh and a shrill scream of pain filled the council room, making some raise their eyebrows.

"The crazy bitch cut his balls off!" a man's terrified voice pointed out. While the men in the room groaned at the implication and Tsume stared at the device with obvious revere, Anko's voice laced with insane malice was heard.

"Do you any of you know exactly why I'm in the bingo book?! I'll show you, you goddamn pieces of shit!"

What followed was fifteen long minutes of horror that the council wished they didn't have to hear as they listened to ten men's screams of terror and agony intermixed with slicing flesh, hissing snakes, and Anko's insane cackling about how she was going to make sure they all regretted it. It was apparent all the nin wished they were never born at that moment. Finally, after everything fell silent, there was only Anko's heavy breathing and it dragged out for a few minutes before she finally mumbled something.

"I guess this means the mission is complete." Anko's dead voice lingered in the council room and it sent chills down some spines. There wan an audible click when Ibiki turned off the device and then there was dead silence as the entire council just stared at the device as if they expected it to make any more sound. The Hokage cleared his throat.

"Ibiki-san, what can you tell me about the bodies Mitarashi-san recovered?"

"The four men all had their throats sliced ear-to-ear, which corresponds with what we heard on the recording. As for the bodies of the missing nin..." Ibiki let out a sigh here. "...let's just say for some of them I'm going to have to request alternative forms of identification from other hidden villages to confirm their bounties. The others are what I'd call lucky."

"Lucky? They all died!" Tsume cut in.

"Exactly. They died fast enough and they were still easily recognizable because of that."

That sent shivers down many spines.

"I believe we have resolved the issue of conflicting reports. It is clear Mitarashi-san was not in the wrong in this one. Is there any objection?" the Third announced and everyone around him shook their head.

"After what we heard tonight, I declare the four men be made missing nin posthumously. As part of the reparations, I will add their standard bounties to Mitarashi-san's total bounties she earned from this mission." the assembled council all agreed that was reasonable considering the emotional trauma she was going through dealing with her sudden betrayal.

"To allow her to recover, I will give her a month off from any military activity except for training and allow her to do part-time work at the T&I for another month before she gets back to full-time status. Anything to add?"

"I suggest seeing a counselor to help her migrate the issues stemming from this betrayal." Inoichi added. The Hokage frowned.

"Migrate? You don't mean resolve?" he queried and Inoichi sighed wearily. Ibiki scowled harshly as he knew what the blond man meant.

"I'm afraid not. She was betrayed and abandoned to her fate without a second thought again. I don't think that will ever be fully resolved so the best thing we can do is help Mitarashi-san lessen her trauma enough to be a functioning member of the force. This may have a lesser impact compared to Orochimaru's betrayal but this incident most likely shattered her faith in the ability of most of our force to watch her back. She will most likely avoid squads from now on and prefer to only take solo missions or with those she already trusts. She may act like she's past this in a short while but I don't think she'll ever truly get over this. She would always watch her back even among comrades and that's no way to work on squad missions." Inoichi solemnly explained to the grim-faced council. The Third frowned sadly and asked again if there was anything else to add. No one said anything so he brought the meeting to a close. A few minutes later after the council has filed out of the room, Hiruzen sank back into his chair with a weary sigh.

"Why must you continue to endure more painful betrayals, Anko-chan?" he mumbled to himself.

"I think she'll recover sooner this time compared to before, sensei." Jiraiya's voice cut into his musing. He had almost forgotten his student was still standing next to him.

"What makes you think that, Jiraiya-kun?'

"Compared to after Orochimaru when she's had no one, she now has a couple people she can confide in and trust this time, including our favorite blonde." the Toad Sage said with a knowing grin and Hiruzen nodded weakly with a smile. If someone could help Anko recover from this quickly, it would be Naruto and his ability to cheer up people around him.

**Naruto's apartment**

The living room was still in dead silence long after Anko has finished retelling what happened with her squad. She was now staring into her empty cup in her lap while Naruto was leaning forward in his chair, his elbows resting on his knees as he glared angrily at a spot on the wall directly in front of him. His cup was crackling under his grip. The silence was thick enough to cut with a knife that there was some barely perceptible relief from Anko when Naruto broke it.

"How could they?" Naruto asked half rhetorically, his tone hard.

"They tried to save their own asses, that's all." Anko's quiet reply was the answer. Naruto shot up out of his chair, his tea cup forgotten and shattered on the floor. Anko flinched visibly at her friend's anger.

"You want to justify their action?! They just offered you up as a toy to be used to 'save their own asses'!" Naruto managed to keep his voice down but his anger was obvious and Anko shifted uncomfortably in her seat, looking very vulnerable at that moment.

"No, I don't. Just saying what they were thinking." she mumbled as her gaze shifted down to the floor. Naruto noticed her uncomfortable fidgeting and all the anger he was building up left him immediately. His eyes softened from the icy blue they were showing and he moved cautiously over to the couch next to Anko and sat down slowly. Anko seemed to have relaxed the moment Naruto's anger left him and he realized she didn't want him to get angry on her behalf, but wanted a comforting presence instead. As if to prove that, Anko leaned in and her arms slowly wrapped around Naruto's torso so she could pull herself in and snuggle against his left side. Naruto wasn't surprised by this as she occasionally did this in the past after bad days.

"Sorry, but I need this. I'm a psychotic bitch most of the time but even on some days I just need to be held." she admitted softly into Naruto's chest. Naruto smiled and started raking his left hand through her long hair, making her relax even more and about to purr.

"You may be a psychotic bloodsucker but you've never been a bitch to me." Naruto joked and was rewarded with a half-hearted swat on his stomach.

"Is that supposed to make me feel better, gaki?' Anko retorted into his chest but Naruto could hear the smile in her voice. They spent a few long minutes quietly enjoying the comfort before Anko finally spoke up.

"I don't think I'll be able to go on any more mission with teams again for a long time, at least not without driving myself insane with paranoia." she concluded sadly. Naruto took a deep breath, visibly lifting Anko's head up and down.

"So switch to working in T&I full time. As you like to keep reminding me, the prisoners fear you so much they'd rather meet the devil instead." Naruto suggested. Anko shook a little as she chuckled and she shifted her head so she rested her chin on his chest and looked up into his face with a grin.

"That could be the case if I hadn't made myself way too good on the field and my combat skills are top-notch, as I'm sure you remember experiencing firsthand." she teased and chuckled again at Naruto's grimace. He certainly remembered his very humbling losses at the hands of Anko in their matches.

"The old man can't afford to do without my skills and I'm not going to ask him otherwise. I guess I'll have to only accept solo or large-scale missions." Anko concluded with a sad smile and Naruto frowned. Large-scale missions wasn't much of an issue since that usually occurred in wars, but he didn't like the idea of her being alone out there on solo missions. That usually meant infiltrations and assassinations and they were typically the most dangerous without help. She could do a hundred of these missions flawlessly and then on the next one, something could go wrong out of her control and that'd be that. She would disappear without a trace and there'd be nothing left of her except her name on the monument for those who died on the field. That thought terrified him more than anything else and he possessively wanted to keep her here. Anko, sensing what was going through her blond friend's mind, reached up with a hand and softly patted his cheek to knock him out of his thought process. Surprised blue eyes shifted downward onto focused light brown eyes.

"None of that depressing shit you were thinking, gaki." she muttered sternly much to the blonde's embarrassment, but she was a little glad on the inside that Naruto worried so much for her. She snuggled up even deeper into his chest then nuzzled her cheek against his chest and just enjoyed listening to his steadily beating heart right next to her ear. She wished at that moment that he would be assigned with her on missions often when he graduated because she knew she could trust him completely. If she didn't have to deal with two brats next to Naruto, she would've applied to be his jounin-sensei this coming graduation.

"What if I work with you?" Naruto's voice snapped Anko out of her thoughts and she smiled gratefully that he was thinking along the same line as her.

"Not as a jounin-sensei and student. I know you're capable and can handle yourself but I just don't have the patience to wipe the other two brats' asses for them if I took on both you and them." Anko replied a little dejectedly, making sure to verbally separate him from the others. He was clearly on a different level from them after all.

"Then I promise I'll make chunin as quickly as I can and ask to work with you then. You won't have to wait too long before you'll have someone back you up again. Just please be careful until then." Naruto's worried but determined face made Anko feel warm inside as she continued to listen to his heartbeats. She blushed at his strong desire to make sure she was safe on missions and buried her face in his chest again.

"I'd like that very much...Naruto." she muttered into his chest, allowing her blush to intensify and her smile to get wider.

**Next morning**

Anko stretched and yawned as she woke up tangled up in the bed cover. She noticed the morning sun was starting to come up and the darkness was lifting from the room. She frowned for an instant when she noticed she wasn't in her bedroom, but relaxed in relief when she realized it was Naruto's bedroom. She let out a happy sigh as she shifted her body onto her stomach and, with her face buried in the sheet, allowed herself to inhale some of Naruto's scent. It was a pleasant mixture of sandalwood and grass, with a small hint of musk. She breathed it in with a content smile for a minute before she slowly sat up on the bed's edge.

Naruto had given her his room for the night since she didn't feel like being alone in her apartment and it was the best night of sleep she's had since her nightmares caused by the curse mark stopped. It was odd since she should have been more bothered by the recent betrayal but Naruto apparently had more of a calming effect on her than she thought. Anko felt some warmth in the pit of her stomach as she remembered Naruto promising to find ways to back her up on their missions together. She smiled and stretched again then hopped off to tug her discarded flannel pants back on since she slept through last night in just her t-shirt and panties. She then heard grunts of exertion coming from somewhere in the apartment and deduced it was Naruto doing some morning exercises in the living room.

Anko silently opened the bedroom door and carefully glided down the hallway to peek into the living room. Naruto was facing away doing rapid push-ups in the middle of the living room and a nice sheen of sweat was developing on his currently topless body. Anko grinned as she enjoyed watching the rippling of muscles on his arms and back as he continued to do his push-ups. Her grin turned mischievous as she silently tiptoed into the room behind the exercising boy. She stood for a moment before she silently hopped and landed gracefully on the blonde with her feet planted on his shoulders. She was hoping to surprise the boy and make him fall on his stomach. She was the one who was surprised when the boy barely flinched under her weight but he stopped for a moment, his body fully extended into the air.

"Damn it, you crazy woman! You made me lose count and I have to start over from eight hundred." Naruto muttered in annoyance from underneath her. Anko laughed and was nearly bucked off when he started doing his push-ups again. Deciding she liked her spot, she carefully turned around to face his rear end and sat down on his shoulder blades cross-legged. She rested an elbow on her knee and propped her head as if she was lazily thinking while the blonde continued to do his push-ups underneath her.

"You know, one would be polite enough to get off at this point." Naruto grumbled between counts.

"This one's not polite enough, I guess. I like this spot and you should be happy to feel my sexy ass on you." Anko retorted lazily to the blonde's further grumbling before he stopped cold upon feeling Anko wriggle her hips, digging more of her soft butt into his shoulders and the base of his neck.

"W-w-what are you doing?' he stuttered, trying to ignore the incredible feeling as she continued to rub her derriere on him. He was just about to drop onto his stomach from the overwhelming sensations when she suddenly stopped. He was slightly disappointed about that for some reason.

"Just getting comfortable up here. Continue what you were doing." Anko's voice was dripping with satisfaction that she got a reaction out of Naruto. What Naruto didn't know was that she stopped because she suddenly felt a strong shock throughout her body from accidentally rubbing herself against some of Naruto's incredible muscles. She was struggling to ignore the pleasant sensation just when Naruto muttered something about weird girls and resumed his push-ups. At that point, Anko strained to hold back a blissful yelp when some of his muscles shifted in just the right place and rubbed against her rapidly dampening lower lips through her pants. Her hips wanted to shift by itself downward to dig deeper into Naruto's back for more of that amazing feeling but she managed to keep control and carefully shifted up a little instead to avoid any further accidental rubbing.

She also thanked whoever gave Naruto these wisteria on the coffee table for covering up her sudden arousal around Naruto. Considering he was able to smell when she was having her periods, he certainly would smell a woman's arousal. She didn't want Naruto to think something was going on yet. _Wait...yet? When did I decide that?_ Fighting down her hot flush and a desire to feel more of him rubbing against her, she sat in silence bobbing up and down on his back as he continued to do his exercise for some time. Anko sighed when her stomach growled.

"Oi, I'm feeling like breakfast at the dango shop. Want to come with me before your classes?"

"Can't. Promised to have breakfast and dinner with Hinata-chan and her family for the week. They want to spend time with me before I leave for the summer." Naruto said shortly between breaths. Anko frowned at the reminder he was leaving sooner than she would've liked.

"Maybe I can go with you again." she suggested in a hopeful tone. Naruto stopped while fully extended and let out an apologetic sigh.

"Sorry. Ero-sennin told me it's just him and me this summer." he breathed out before resuming. Anko was disappointed and now became somewhat worried about what she was going to do without him as she dealt with the aftermath of her disastrous mission.

"How's Hinata doing? It's been a while since I left Konoha after all." she asked, changing subjects to avoid getting depressed.

"She's doing great. She was wondering about you too."

Anko smiled a little at that. Despite their competition for Naruto's attention, she admired Hinata's kind yet strong nature. She was quiet but she always knew exactly what she wanted, like how she was steadily going after Naruto for romance someday and made sure nothing got in her way. Hinata always gave everyone a fair shake and only if they did something to deserve it would they earn her ire. She was also a calming influence on Naruto and was usually the one to make him think things through and ensure less problems that way. Anko and, from what she heard about the fox, the Kyuubi would have instantly told the blonde to jump into any situation with all of his jutsu blazing everywhere. Anko smiled at that imagery and considered her question for a moment.

"Oi, what do you really think of Hinata?"

Naruto stopped suddenly underneath her and she was confused when she heard him mutter.

"Why did this feel very familiar to me?"

**Three days later in the Hokage Tower**

Naruto stood and fidgeted nervously as he knocked on the door to the Hokage's office. He was a little worried about leaving Anko alone when he departed with Jiraiya in two days since Yugao hadn't returned from her mission yet. Anko was recovering well but he felt it was because he was around to keep her distracted. The other night when he took his time returning to his apartment, he found Anko by his door and she was a little short with him for a few minutes. It was clear she was anxiously awaiting him each night after his dinner with Hinata.

"Come in." the Hokage's voice reached Naruto through the door and he stepped inside the office.

Hiruzen was wondering what was bothering his surrogate grandson as he studied the young boy's serious face while he stepped up to the desk. He assumed it had something to do with Anko and he was proven right.

"Sorry to bother you, Jiji-san. I just wanted to check with you on if Yugao-san would return from her mission soon?" Naruto nervously asked and Hiruzen smiled sadly.

"Considering it is a secret mission, I cannot tell you the exact date she returns for her safety. However, I will tell you it'll be soon." the Third said gently. Naruto sighed in half dejection and half relief.

"That's better than later. Thank you."

"Is she doing okay?"

"As good as someone who overheard her comrades plot to give her up to unsavory men can be, I suppose." Naruto said with a scowl. He would have liked to find the traitors' cremated remains and piss on them.

"That's all we can hope for. She'll have plenty of time to recover from this." Hiruzen said sadly.

"I just don't like the idea of leaving her alone when I go with Ero-sennin. Any chance I could push back the date I leave a few days? I would've asked him but I can't find him, even at the hot springs and the women's favorite swimming holes around the village." Naruto frowned at the Third's shake of his head.

"Jiraiya-kun said he has an appointment to keep and both of you will need to leave that day to make it. I am sure Anko-chan will be alright for a little while until her older sister returns."

"Doesn't sound like we're going to our usual training field this year." Naruto queried with a curious frown.

"Not this time, Naruto-kun. He's keeping it a surprise for you though so just wait and see." Hiruzen said with a smirk. The blonde just frowned and shrugged.

"Alright, well, I tried my best. Thanks and see you around." Naruto waved and turned to leave as the Hokage leaned back in his chair and smiled proudly at how caring the blonde was about Anko. He was feeling better about his plan for Naruto each day his graduation approached closer. A minute later, on the way out of the building, the same blonde nearly ran into someone and his eyes widened when he looked up at the taller person's veiled face.

"K-k-kazekage?" Naruto blurted out as his eyes took in the man's robes that was similar to his surrogate grandfather's but accented in blue instead with a kanji for "Wind" on the brim of the large hat.

"Uzumaki-san?" the Kazekage's voice had a hint of surprise in it. He was surprised a little more when he watched the blond frown for an instant before schooling his face in a neutral expression. He wondered if it was because the boy was in the presence of a powerful shinobi from another village or was it something his daughter told the boy during the last time she was here?

"Please forgive me for not getting out of your way in time, Kazekage-sama. I hope you have a pleasant day." Naruto spoke neutrally as he was bowing but inside him he felt anger at the person in front of him for being the cause of Temari's problems. All his memories of the pretty blond kunoichi came rushing back into him at that moment and he still felt the sting of her rejecting him in terror. He wondered what she was doing at this present moment. He straightened his back without looking the Kazekage in the face and turned around to continue out of the building when he was stopped.

"Wait, Uzumaki-san. I wish to speak with you for a minute but I have to go see Hokage-dono now. I would be very grateful if you agree to wait for me to conclude my business and we could talk afterward. It shall not be long." the Kazekage called out after the young boy. Naruto stood still with his back to the masked man and there was a long moment of tense silence between the two males.

"It is about my daughter." the kage added, hoping this would give the boy an incentive to remain. It worked.

"Okay. I would be honored to speak with you then. I'll be waiting just outside, Kazekage-sama." Naruto said as he turned and bowed again. He was very curious about what this man had to say about Temari and would gladly stick around for that. The Kazekage nodded sincerely and resumed heading up the stairs to the Hokage's office. Naruto stepped outside and found a nice spot to rest against a nearby tree.

**Soon in Hokage's office**

The Kazekage sat silently in a chair opposite the Hokage and he watched the older man study him with an intense scrutiny. He had just finished his usual business with his fire counterpart and recently revealed his personal agenda.

"I have to admit that's a rather unusual proposal you're suggesting. You don't get any true advantage from this and we have every right to turn it down at any point without repercussions to our alliance. You're putting yourself at every disadvantage to us. Why is that? What would Suna have to gain from this?" the Hokage asked with suspicion clear in his voice.

"This plan was never for my village, but only for my daughter's happiness. She's not been able to find her place in my village and she has no reason to remain with only her duty as its kunoichi tying her down. That may be good enough for most kages but the fact is she's my daughter and I wish for more with her. You do not have to take the proposal now. Just take your time and decide, even if it's years into the future. If you do decide to take this and I am not in power for any reason, take this scroll to my council and they will have no choice but to comply." the Kazekage replied, set in his decision as he set a scroll on the table between the two kages.

"However, you say we won't gain anything from this but I wonder about the public goodwill for our village that may result from this, Hokage-dono." he added mysteriously as his gaze briefly shifted to a nearby photo of the Forth Hokage. The Third Hokage caught this gesture and widened his eyes before he smirked ruefully.

_He just blatantly told me his village's reputation would improve vastly if I accepted this and it was known a foreign girl from his village achieved this with the son of the famous 'Yellow Flash'. He has balls, I'll admit that. I also have to question the intelligence level of my people if someone from another village figured out the connection already ahead of them. _

"You surprise me, Kazekage-dono. Since this is a _sensitive _topic, I'm glad to know you probably do not intend to spread what we've discussed around in case this might make this proposal moot." the Hokage spoke easily but his threat was very clear and the Kazekage accepted it easily.

They said their goodbyes and in a minute the Kazekage stepped outside to find Naruto resting against a tree next to the entrance. He caught the boy's eyes and nodded his head. The blonde stood up quickly and joined the Kazekage in his walk around the village.

"Thank you again for waiting on me." the older man said to Naruto, who frowned.

"I'm afraid it wasn't for you, Kazekage-sama. I'm just curious about your daughter."

"I understand that and I respect your honesty." the Kazekage nodded his head in acceptance.

"How is she doing?"

"She is currently a kunoichi, and a strong one too. I daresay she's already chunin-level but I'm waiting on promoting her."

"Why the wait?" Naruto turned to the kage with a frown.

"It is my wish to have her promoted together with my sons." the man admitted and the boy stopped in his track.

"You mean to tell me you're putting her with her psycho brother? The one that tried to kill her just a few days before the last time she visited here?" he muttered incredulously as he resumed his walk next to the robed man. The Kazekage winced behind his veil. S_he told him that muc__h apparently. Somehow he easily got her out of her shell if she was willing to talk about her brother like that. _

"Yes and I know this sounds bad. However, I have personally trained Gaara since that incident and he's more in control of himself now. Just as long as people made sure to not get in his way, they would be alright." he thanked his veil for hiding his wince when the blonde shot him a venomous look.

"So he just changed from an unstable psycho to a homicidal sociopath." Naruto concluded in deadpan. The Kazekage couldn't say anything in defense to that one. They walked in uncomfortable silence for a few long minutes as they seemed to make their way to a hotel and Naruto let out a deep sigh.

"Look, Kazekage-sama, I can't tell you what to do with your family but please at least just make sure Temari-san is going to be okay. From what she told me, she's had it rough dealing with her brother and her life in Suna wasn't the greatest. I just think she at least deserves a chance to find her own happiness and she'll get that if she lives long enough. That's all I want for her." Naruto pleaded of the wide-eyed man.

"Why would you go this far for a foreign girl you only met for a few hours? She also was terrified of your 'transformation' that day and said some hurtful things to you."

"I don't care about what happened that day. Sure, it hurt a little even now when I remember it but I understood why she was scared. I'm asking this because if someone like me can actually find happiness, then she at least deserves her shot. Since the day I was born, I've only known despair and emptiness for five years. Happiness was a foreign concept to me. I pretended to smile if someone else actually smiled at me because I was just imitating what other people did. I spent nights staring at myself in mirror, seeing only either pure despair or absolute rage on my face. That was the only thing I knew back then." Naruto intoned in a dull tone as his beautiful blue eyes deadened to such dullness the shocked Kazekage wondered if the boy was a zombie for a moment. He never saw his son display this kind of eyes. The blonde's dull eyes then sprang back to full life, as if what the Kazekage just saw was an illusion.

"I managed to make friends when I was about to turn six. I still pretended though. I copied their behaviors and words to to pass myself off as normal. However, it wasn't long till I started feeling actual happiness. It was gradual at first but eventually one day I realized I didn't need to pretend anymore. That was the greatest day ever for me, I think. So if someone as 'undeserving' as me could be happy, then Temari-san deserves her shot to go for it too. Even Gaara can change too." Naruto finished then he struck an assertive pose and pointed at the bemused Kazekage.

"That's why if I ever meet him and he's still being a huge asshole about just killing people left and right, then I'm going to beat all of that asshole out of him and tell him there's more to life than ripping people apart with sand." he declared with such determination in his voice that the kage was already inclined to believe him. After staring at the still-pointing boy for a moment, he let out a sincere chuckle from behind his veil.

"I may have to put my faith in you then if I fail in the future." was all he admitted as they reached the hotel the Kazekage was staying at.

"I have to prepare for departure. Before I leave, I need to be honest with you here. I don't normally meddle in my children's lives but in this case I feel I need to. Temari has regretted what she said to you that day and I can see it in her eyes every day since then. I actually invited her to come with me on this trip but she declined. She apparently was afraid of what she would hear from you." the Kazekage decided to put it out there now. Naruto looked up at him with wide eyes.

"She was? I would've said everything was fine and that'll be that."

"I think that's all she needed to hear and I believe she would feel better afterward." the kage admitted. He was then curious when he watched the blonde dig a blank scroll out of one of his jacket's many pockets along with a bottle of ink and brush. The boy searched for a flat surface and found it on a nearby bench then moved to lay the scroll out on it and immediately started writing. The Kazekage, watching from behind the boy, was surprised to find Naruto's handwriting to be beautiful and precise Despite such amazing beauty, he wrote blazingly fast with no mistakes or misplaced blots of ink. He concluded the blonde in front of him was practicing fuijustu in addition to his other skills and he had to wonder just how far this offspring of that _man _would get with his talents. The scroll snapping closed broke the man out of his thoughts and he saw Naruto holding a closed scroll up in front of him.

"If it's not too much trouble, Kazekage-sama, please pass this on to Temari-san. I think she'll feel better reading that." Naruto said with a genuine smile. The Kazekage studied the boy as he took the scroll into his hands and felt completely assured at that moment he made the correct choice with his plan for Temari.

"Thank you, Uzumaki-san. My daughter will be relieved to hear from you and I wish you good luck with your future endeavors. This is the last thing I have to say, this time as a father. I expect you to make the correct choice with your heart in the future. You will see what I mean should that day come to pass." he said sincerely and bowed. A confused Naruto bowed back and watched the Kazekage disappear up into the hotel.

"Wonder what he meant by that?" he muttered to himself as he walked off down a street.

**The night before departure**

Naruto yawned as he opened the door to his apartment. He had just left Anko at her apartment and was just about ready to fall over asleep. He was already packed for the trip and would just have to get up tomorrow morning and walk straight out the main gate with Jiraiya. As he thought over his departure, he felt something was off in his unlit apartment. He didn't take the time to think this over and went into action. He instantly rolled forward on the floor and sprang out of it into a jump toward the far wall of the living room and as soon as his feet and hands touched on it, he sprang off toward one of his chairs that was hiding in a pitch-back corner. As Naruto sharpened his fingernails into claws with a snarl, a large hand shot out of the dark corner and grabbed him by his neck to stop the boy completely in his flight with a loud choking sound.

"Good try, gaki. You almost got my timing off with that jump to the wall there but too bad." a man's voice rumbled out as the hand continued to hoist the coughing boy in the air by his neck. A grinning Jiraiya faded into existence from the shadows.

"Oi, mind putting me down, Ero-sennin?" Naruto managed to cough out.

"Why would I do that when you're just a clone?" Jiraiya shot back with an evil grin as he squeezed his hand on the now surprised clone's neck hard enough to pop it. His other hand shot out and slammed onto a nearby wall. He was rewarded with a cry of surprise and the same blonde shimmering into existence on the wall, his neck trapped by the hand. It was apparent Naruto managed to hide there with the **Invisibility Cloak **jutsu earlier when he rolled into the living room.

"Nice little trick with the clone and a jutsu I taught you, gaki. That would fool everyone but me." Jiraiya said with a proud grin.

"The problem is the one I wanted to fool was you." Naruto grumbled with a half grin even when he was still pinned against the wall.

"Well, that's why you're my student, gaki. It's so you would surpass me someday." Jiraiya retorted as he let go of the boy and Naruto landed on the floor not so gracefully.

"Anyway, any reason you decided to let yourself into my apartment?" he asked wearily, his desire to go to bed obvious.

"Just wanted to see where my cute little godson lives and I thought I would tell you where we're going, since I think you might need to pack a few extra things."

"Really?! Where?!" Naruto's exhaustion was momentarily blown away by his excitement.

"We're going up north to the Land of Iron. So pack warm. In fact, very warm."

"So we're going there to get the rest of the fox's chakra then. I shouldn't be surprised by that." Naruto assumed but Jiraiya shook his head.

"That was an added bonus. I planned this for a little bit longer than you think. That's why I thought it was a nice coincidence when the fox told you that was where her den is." Jiraiya reminded and Naruto remembered how Jiraiya reacted to that revelation with surprise last year.

"So what's there?"

"In my travels I came across a great weapon maker and I felt he was very capable of making you the best weapons you need. I commissioned him about a year and half ago for this job. Iron is where he lives and we're going there to pick up your shiny new sabers." Jiraiya announced with a smirk at his godson's gobsmacked expression.

"W-w-what? I think I only saved up enough for a barely decent pair. How will I be able to afford custom orders?" Naruto managed to stutter out.

"No worries, gaki. It's my treat so think of this as your early graduation present. Considering I know a saber's main weakness to be its low durability, I ordered six sabers to be made so you'd have some backups at least just in case. In addition, the weapon maker will be prepared to make more in the future if you need more but that'll have to be on your own expense from now on. Not that you should worry about the durability since I was promised the sabers would be better made than most blades out there and it'll be a long time before you'll have to worry about their condition." Jiraiya explained, amused to see the growing excitement on Naruto's face. The ecstatic blonde immediately rocketed into Jiraiya's chest with rapid-fire thank-yous mixed with the older man's laughter that went on for a while.

**Early next morning at the main gate**

Hyuuga Hinata turned the corner on the mostly empty main street to see the gate to outside the village loom large in her view and let out a dejected sigh at the sight. She really didn't want Naruto to leave and she felt like it got harder and more painful for her each summer he left. Last year, it felt like her heart was constantly clenching painfully any time she was reminded of Naruto's absence until he finally came back. She wondered how she was going to deal with it this year if it became worse than that. As she walked up to the gate, a person came into view at its base and she recognized the shape immediately. Hinata smiled gently as she found her answer and hoped this person would agree with the idea.

Mitarashi Anko was squatting down against the side of the large wooden gate with her arms wrapped around her knees. She was dreading the moment Naruto stepped outside these gates and she won't see him for three months. She knew she shouldn't have been so dependent on the younger boy over the past week but she couldn't help it when his presence did nothing but calm and comfort her in the middle of this crazy world. Hell, she had to wonder if he was just an older midget because no normal twelve-year old should have been so mature and able to easily put up with an unstable woman like her. At this point, someone stepped close enough to catch her attention, jolting her out of her thoughts. She looked up to see a grinning Hinata.

"Thinking about him, Anko-san?" the indigo-haired girl asked with a smile, as if she was happy that someone else was thinking about the same person she was. There was no teasing or jealousy. Anko blushed at being read so easily.

"Why else would I be up at this godforsaken hour for?" she mumbled as she shifted her gaze away from the younger girl's steady white eyes. It felt like she was being read if she kept staring at Hinata.

"You could have been just taking a walk." Hinata teased lightly as she moved over next to Anko's squatted form and leaned against the frame of the gate as well. Anko smiled a little as she stared down the main street at a side street she knew Naruto would emerge from to take the path here.

"Yeah, I'm just taking a walk."

As they waited silently for their favorite blonde, Hinata glanced down at Anko as she remembered back to what Naruto said about this purple-haired woman.

**Flashback to that night outside the compound**

"I think she's the strongest person I know. Not just physically but on the inside too. She's dealt with so much pain and hatred that she had it worse than I did and that's pretty bad. Yet she managed to stick it out and never gave up. Even when things got better for her last year, she never took anything for granted and still strives to be as strong as she can get and refuses to let anyone tell her otherwise." Naruto said fondly as he looked up at the waning moon.

"She sounds like you, Naruto-kun." Hinata remarked but she was surprised by a momentarily dulling of his eyes and his smile shifted down a notch.

"No, I wasn't strong enough once. And because of that, she'll always be a better person than me for that."

"But I've never seen you as anything other than strong." At this point, Naruto moved his gaze toward her with an odd smile.

"This was before I met any of you so don't worry." he clarified. Hinata wanted to know what happened but she knew Naruto wasn't going to say anything more about it.

"It feels like, with her unwillingness to give up and fight it out, Anko-chan always showed me how much better a person I could become. I think as long as I have her around so I can remind myself, I'll eventually become that person and I guess that's why I trust her to keep me going straight in that direction. The fact she's fun to be around in the meantime probably didn't hurt." Naruto added with a chuckle. Hinata smiled and nodded.

"I understand, Naruto-kun. Thank you for being honest with me."

**Present**

Hinata knew the reason for Naruto suddenly striving to improve himself even more over the past year was next to her and she felt thankful for that. He would become an even more amazing man in the future and she was very much looking forward to that.

"Anko-san, how would you like it if we spent some time together? Just the two of us. It may help pass time quickly over the summer." Hinata suddenly offered. Anko was surprised at the offer out of the blue but she had to admit she found it very appealing. She knew how bad Hinata had it for Naruto and she was starting to wonder about herself now after the past week of being addicted to finding comfort in his presence. Having Hinata around to chat with, sometimes about Naruto, would help with the loneliness that would certainly result from Naruto leaving. She looked up at an anxious-looking Hinata and considered what Naruto told her about Hinata.

**Flashback to that morning in Naruto's apartment**

"Oi, get off." Naruto said gruffly and Anko quickly complied. As Naruto stood up and grabbed a nearby gym towel to wipe off his sweat, Anko was gleefully enjoying checking his muscular torso out. She felt the lingering sensation from accidentally rubbing against him return in full force upon imagining a few years added to the age of the blonde in front of her. She liked the image very much to say the least.

"Hinata-chan asked me the same thing about you a while ago so that's why what you asked threw me off." Naruto explained as he continued rubbing the towel on his torso. It was nearly enough to distract Anko but she persevered.

"She did?"

"Yup. Told her what I thought and she seemed happy with what she heard."

"So you had to make up some good things about me?" Anko teased but Naruto frowned.

"I would never lie about you because you're a good person. You make me want to improve myself all the time and be a better person and that's what I told Hinata-chan." Naruto said it so sincerely that Anko blushed bright red before she realized it.

"W-what are you saying, gaki?" she stuttered and Naruto chuckled at her expression. He continued before she could get annoyed.

"To answer your question...I guess, just like how you make me try my best to be strong, Hinata-chan keeps me grounded. She keeps me thinking of a hundred different ways to look at a situation before I act. I know how much she cares about me and how much she respects me, for whatever reason I probably won't understand, and she's the type that would gladly take whatever happens to her in stride as long as it has something to do with me. Because of that, I'm terrified that I would take that for granted one day and hurt her badly if my rashness drew her in. So what I do is I watch where I go before I take a step and make sure it causes the least amount of trouble for anyone if something blows up. So I guess you and Hinata-chan both keep me in the middle, I don't want to be complacent but I'm also making sure I don't fly too close to the sun with wings made of wax, to quote a tale the fox told me." Naruto explained nervously as he finished toweling off. There was silence for a moment as Anko considered what he said before she nodded.

"I think I understand what you mean. Though, who would fly close to the sun with wax wings? It's obvious they would melt!" Anko pointed out with a confused frown. Naruto laughed suddenly.

"The fox said this Icarus person could learn a thing or two from you."

**Back to present**

Anko smiled at the memory before she looked back at Hinata, who was anxiously awaiting her answer.

"Sure...figured it's time we bury the hatchet between us. How about when the gaki leaves, we go to the dango shop? I know they sell those cinnamon rolls gaki said you like a lot." Anko said with a grin and Hinata blushed at the mention of her addiction.

"We'll at least give in to our addictions together." the young jounin added with a chuckle and Hinata smiled brightly.

"I'd like that, Anko-san."

"I don't like the 'san'. Just call me 'chan' like gaki does. In return, I'll call you the same way." Anko requested and the younger girl nodded happily.

"Thank you...Anko-chan."

At this point, Anko got tired of squatting and stood up fully to stretch with a yawn and Hinata was wondering about something.

"Ano...Anko-chan, why do you often call Naruto-kun 'gaki'?"

"It annoys the hell out of him. In returns he calls me bloodsucker once in a while." Anko replied with a laugh as she remembered the various annoyed expressions Naruto displayed.

"Ano...why would he call you that?" the younger girl asked nervously and shifted a little uncomfortably under Anko's mischievous expression.

"Want me to show you, Hinata-chan?" she offered with a grin. As if to save Hinata from an uncomfortably close shave with a kunai, Naruto appeared on the main street with Jiraiya at that moment.

"Oi! Wasn't expecting you here." the blonde called out as he and the Toad Sage approached.

"We came here to see you off." Hinata clarified as she bowed deeply to a suddenly sheepish Jiraiya.

"Please take care of him, Jiraiya-sama." At this, Naruto frowned.

"No, I'm the one who's going to take care of him. I bet in the next town we stop in, he'll be stomped to death by angry women and I'll have to bury him." he grumbled before being conked on his head by an irritated Jiraiya.

"Oi! Don't make bets like that lightly. Your luck's so terrifyingly good it's liable to come true!" he muttered grouchily. Anko and Hinata chuckled at the banter and they all sighed when silence fell on them. It was time. Hinata stepped up to hug Naruto first.

"I'm going to miss you." was all she was able to say into his ear without her voice breaking. Anko followed suit after Hinata released.

"Be safe and I expect you to stop by my apartment first thing when you get back." she whispered.

Naruto accepted their hugs with an assuring smile.

"I'll be back before you know it. Try to keep this town in one piece till then." he joked before he and Jiraiya signed out at the gatehouse and stepped out. Before long, the girls finally lost sight of the small blond and white specks in the distance and Anko sighed.

"Back before we know it? Kinda hard to believe that when we're going to be looking out here a lot over the summer." she mumbled and Hinata nodded glumly. Finally, they turned around and walked into the village toward the dango shop to drown in their addictions.

**Tomorrow in Sunakagure**

"Temari." a man's voice called out from behind Temari in the living room of the family estate. She was sitting on the sofa reading a book, relaxing in a comfortable outfit with her hair down. It was one of her rare off days.

"Yes, Kazekage-sama?" she muttered with some slight annoyance in her voice and the man winced a little.

"I just returned from Konahagakure. I thought you would like to know I ran into the Uzumaki boy." he smirked a little when he watched his daughter's perk up slightly from her book.

"Is that so, Kazekage-sama?" she struggled to keep her voice neutral but there was obviously an undertone of anxiety.

"He said he hopes you were doing well."

"I see." her shoulders slumped slightly, a little disappointed there wasn't more. She was so easy to read.

"He also gave me this scroll to give to you." mirth laced the Kazekage's voice as he held a scroll up in his hand.

WHOOSH!

He blinked in surprise to see his hand empty. He turned his head to the side to see Temari already standing at the living room's doorway with the scroll clutched tightly in both hands. That was faster than jounin speed!

"Thank you for taking the time to deliver his message, Father." Temari bowed formally but she couldn't keep her smile off her face as she stepped out, obviously headed for the privacy of her bedroom. The Kazekage watched her go with a slight smile on his face.

_She called me 'Father' just now. Just this once was more than I expected._

Temari closed the door to her room and briskly walked over to her desk. She sat and set the scroll down. As she reached up to pull it open, she paused.

_What if it's something bad? Will he say he hates me or something similar? I don't think I can take that._

Doubt crept into her mind for a moment but she shook it off and, with a determined expression, pulled the scroll open. The first thing she noticed was the beautiful and precise handwriting and she had to gasp audibly. She took up calligraphy and considered her handwriting to be top-notch but this was a hundred times better! Before she could get lost in the art that was Naruto's handwriting, she shook it off and started to read.

_Dear Temari-san,_

_If you're wondering about the handwriting, it's a side-effect of my fuijutsu training. Everyone keeps asking about that so I figured that'd be the first thing you'd notice too. _

Temari blushed at being read so easily. Three days in advance too if she included the travel time for her father to get back here from Konoha!

_I'm sorry but I should keep this short since your father needed to leave soon. However, he was telling me you're now a strong kunoichi. I'm happy to hear you're doing great so far in Suna, despite dealing with what you've told me about last time we saw each other. Unfortunately, your father also told me your brother is now a homicidal maniac instead of an unstable psycho so I hope you're hanging on. At least just long enough until I meet you again and kick your brother's killing tendencies out of him for you._

Temari laughed slightly and her eyes watered a little at how much Naruto still cared about her welfare.

_One last thing before I go. Temari-san, remember this. I do not hate you at all. I do not want to have nothing to do with you. I'd like to be friends with you some day if you're willing to look past my 'uniqueness'. There's nothing to forgive here because I have never once held anything against you for that day and I hope you won't hold anything against me either. I hope we'll see each other again soon and that everything'll be ok between us this time._

_Sincerely, _

_Uzumaki Naruto_

A drop of water splashed onto the scroll next to Naruto's signature as Temari rose a hand to wipe away tears from her cheeks. She sniffled and sighed shakily.

"Everything's already okay now, Naruto. Thank you so much for writing this to me. You have no idea how much better I'm feeling right now." she whispered to the scroll in a broken voice. She slowly closed it after rereading the letter several times. Standing up from the desk with shaky legs, she stopped at her dresser that was topped with her collection of knitted dolls. It grew in the years since, but the centerpiece has always been a blond orange-clad human doll that she knitted herself. It had a simple expression with two small knots of dark blue yarn for eyes and a short black string that formed a smile. She smiled affectionally as she reached out for the doll and gingerly took it into her hands. She then slowly climbed onto her bed and drew herself into a tight ball with a moan as she clutched the doll to her chest.

"Thank you and please be ok wherever you are, Naruto." was all she mumbled out before some quiet sniffling filled the room

**At the same time in a small village on the way to Land of Iron**

"I knew it, you little bastard!" Jiraiya growled as he ran full speed down a street. Naruto was being carried under his arm facing backward. He stared with a deadpan expression at a roaring crowd of angry towel-clad women chasing after them.

"What did I do? I was just minding my own damn business when you suddenly grabbed me as you ran by." Naruto said dully as he casually dodged a thrown butcher knife that almost stabbed Jiraiya in the back instead.

"It was that bet you made about me being stomped to death! You just had to make it come true!" the Toad Sage shouted as he ran faster.

"You were the one that said we had to leave on time for an appointment. At first, I thought you meant we had to see the weapon maker at a certain time. But this...you're a despicable bastard and I'm ashamed you're my godfather." Naruto spat out venomously as he continued to be carried by the 'despicable bastard'.

"Don't say that, gaki! If you're a real man, you just absolutely can't miss this all-female onsen convention going on in this town! The prime beauties usually only bath at certain times and I just had to be here to get more inspirations!"

"And now you're running for your life from them. I have no idea where they got those knives from when all they're wearing are towels." Naruto calmly observed of the frothing women screaming obscenities at the two males as Jiraiya continued to deftly slip through obstacles.

"Who said it's just me running? You're in danger with me too!" Jiraiya retorted as he hopped over a high fence which the women smashed through with brute force. The Toad Sage felt absolute dread overwhelm him when Naruto looked over with a malicious grin.

"I said so, since you've been talking to a clone this whole time. This is for making boss leave Anko-chan alone when he didn't have to! Have fun being stomped to death, teme-sennin!" the clone growled as it popped, leaving Jiraiya empty-handed and horrorstruck. That was just before he tripped over a wire left behind by the original Naruto now perched above on a nearby rooftop. He had prime view of his godfather finally being caught by the angry women. He had to wince once in a while as he watched unspeakable horrors being visited on Jiraiya and cackled evilly at the shrill screams he was hearing. After a while, the women finally left behind a broken and battered Jiraiya in a desolate alley.

"I...I hate you." the squashed Toad Sage croaked out.

"Aw, love you too." Naruto retorted in deadpan from his rooftop perch. He felt a breeze caress his face and he blinked at this sudden odd feeling. He rotated his head around while taking in the view of the large flat landscape surrounding the small town they were in. He found what he was looking for as he began locking onto a certain direction and concentrated his vision into the distance for a moment. He nearly jumped when a fully healed and unblemished Jiraiya hopped onto the roof next to him after being a pile of broken bones and bruised flesh just thirty seconds ago.

"Something catch your attention, gaki?" he spoke as if his declaration of hatred never happened.

"Just an odd feeling that's all."

"Someone might be thinking about you." Jiraiya suggested with a smirk.

"What's in that direction? I know it's not Konoha." Naruto pointed where he felt this odd sensation.

"Suna. You got a girl there?" Jiraiya joked, not really meaning it. Naruto turned to his godfather with a half-smile.

"I got a friend there." was all he mysteriously said as he hopped off the roof.

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**So...that was a long chapter huh? Probably will be the longest I'll ever write in this entire story. It's because i wanted to get everything squared away for the next chapter. **

**I'm going to explain something in this chapter some of you may not agree with. That's revealing Naruto's parentage and the Kyuubi thing to his friends. To be honest, I honestly don't see the point of dragging that out and try to set up dramas in which one or more of them finds out accidentally and problems crop up from that. Naruto's friends were gathered in one spot and he trusts them enough not to go telling it to the whole world so it was an easy enough decision for me to have Naruto reveal it early. Should I decide to have Iwa or anyone else important find out, it'll be too late by then. Naruto will be strong and crafty enough by then to discourage attacks so no worries. **

**I'm sure some of you noticed from the foreshadowing that the next one will probably be special. Well, it is pretty important. So that's why i'm not promising a week for the next update like last time. I'll just get it to you soon as I'm satisfied with what I'll write. I've always done my best for each chapter so far but this next chapter is probably going to be my pride and joy for a long time to come in this story and I want to make sure it's as good as i can make it for you guys. Have a nice one until the next post! **


	16. The Hunt Pt 1

**Well, I know I promised you a great chapter but this project turned out to be so much bigger than I thought. My mind wouldn't stop adding here and there and even though I'm sure some of you would be happy with reading over 40,000 words in one sitting even after just reading 30,000 last chapter, that would be an equivalent of reading the first Harry Potter book with just these two chapters together. My hope is to provide a fun story and I'm not doing that by making all of you sit in one spot for too long just to read a 'quick' chapter. So I had to split this giant and awesome chapter in two. You guys will get the second half in just a few days or so since that's mostly done and I just need to tweak and proofread it. I hope you'll enjoy and please go to the bottom A/N for a new poll ****announcement! **

**Usual thanks goes to LoverofLemons for his hard work keeping me straight and true on this story. **

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**WARNING: This story will contain mature language, sexual themes, and graphic depictions of violence and gore.**

**DISCLAIMER: I do not own Naruto or any of its characters.**

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**Chapter 16: The Hunt Pt. 1**

**Around the time of Naruto's departure, in an unknown location**

It was dark and ominous in the seemingly endless maze of hallways the masked man was navigating, his every step echoing eerily around him. The man, a recently promoted jounin with training and experience, would be proud to admit he feared only few things in his life and an early and violent death by an enemy wasn't one of them. However, he would admit with complete honesty and no shame that he was absolutely terrified of one thing or, rather, a person. He hadn't decided on that distinction yet. Unfortunately for this almost fearless man, he was walking down this maze of hallways to see this thing/person hybrid with a message scroll in his hand. Yes, Yasuda Joji would freely admit he was scared shitless right now and he thanked Kami he only dealt directly with Orochimaru on a rare few occasions in the time since he was pulled into service to him.

Upon arriving at a door that looked the same as all the other doors lining this hallway, Joji knocked on the door and waited for a reply. He had to suppress a violent shudder when a cold and smooth voice reached him through the door.

"Ah, yes. Please enter, Yasuda-san."

Taking a quick breath to cleanse his body of any tremor, Joji carefully opened the door to step into a dimly lit room. Torches lined the room but their light never seemed to reach the center of this large room, as if the darkness there was pushing back against the light. In the middle of the almost pitch-black darkness, Joji was able to almost make out an outline of a throne with a longhaired man sitting in it. He gulped as a pair of yellow snake-like eyes peered out through a break in the man's curtain of hair toward him.

"I presume you have something important for me, Yasuda-san, if you needed to interrupt my brief introspection." the same cold and smooth voice from earlier spoke easily but there was a definite threat behind the words. Joji stiffened his posture and bowed.

"Yes, Orochimaru-sama. I was handed a message scroll that came via hawk from Konohagakure." the terrified jounin wondered how he managed to speak with a straight face against such a threat. Orochimaru seemed to have made some of the darkness go away as he faded into full visibility on the throne. His yellow eyes seemed to search Joji's before his pale face stretched into a cold smirk.

"I see...a message from him certainly takes precedence over my introspection any time, especially when it is unscheduled. Thank you for quickly bringing this to my attention." Orochimaru replied smoothly as he held a hand out for Joji to step close enough and hand over the message scroll.

"Please remain while I read it, Yasuda-san. I may require your service afterward." he ordered just as Joji was hoping to get out of the room as quickly as possible. Instead, he stood still as he watched his master open the scroll and read over it slowly.

"I see this concerns my old friend in Root." Orochimaru commented lightly as he read further down the scroll. At one point, his face formed a hungry-looking expression that made Joji shiver. Finally, Orochimaru closed the scroll and sat in thought for a moment before a chilling chuckle escaped his lips.

"Kukukuku...my spy has relayed some certainly interesting information from Danzo. It seems my idiot of an ex-teammate has taken on another student. The Kyuubi host, in fact." he remarked mostly to himself as he got more comfortable in the throne and went back into his thoughts.

While Orochimaru liked to consider himself the best of the Sannin, the truth was that he wasn't sure who would survive if he got pulled into a direct one-on-one battle to the death with his ex-teammate. Jiraiya also had a hand in raising one of the most powerful shinobi in the Elemental Nations, Namikaze Minato. For his ex-teammate to have taken on another student, and it was the host of the strongest bijuu in existence too, it meant Jiraiya saw something special in that boy. Minato interfered with Orochimaru's bid for the position of Forth Hokage, and he had a very good hunch this Uzumaki Naruto was going to meddle in some of his future plans if the boy was allowed to grow under Jiraiya's guidance. Fortunately, with these bad news came some good ones. Jiraiya took the Kyuubi jinchuuriki away from the safety of Konoha for training over the summer and it was thanks to Danzo who provided that information. This Uzumaki brat must have gotten under Danzo's skin so much that old cripple was willing to send this information about a vital asset to Konoha's security Orochimaru's way.

He was also very intrigued by this opportunity to experiment on a jinchuuriki, despite the risk of having the entirety of Akatsuki go after him for stealing one of the bijuu, not to mention the Akatsuki ring he kept when he betrayed them. While he wasn't able to take over the boy's body due to the bijuu being sealed inside him, Orochimaru believed he would reap a lot of benefits from experiments if he were successful in snatching the boy from Jiraiya at this time before the Uzumaki boy grew too strong to capture safely.

"Yasuda-san, gather nine men for a mission to capture someone alive. You will be the leader. Also, make sure to dress discreetly so no one would associate any of you with my village." Orochimaru ordered suddenly, making Joji almost jump after waiting in tense silence so long while his master was deep in his thoughts.

"I-if I may, Orochimaru-sama, is there a reason why I need that many men for a capture mission?" Joji had to force himself to ask. He finally trembled visibly when Orochimaru allowed a feral smirk to form on his face.

"The person you're to capture is a twelve-year old shinobi-in-training named Uzumaki Naruto, who is the host of the strongest bijuu in existence, the Kyuubi. Not only that, you also have to somehow snatch him from under the nose of my ex-teammate Jiraiya, another one of the Legendary Sannin." he spoke with an amused tone, as if he was enjoying sending his men into such danger. Joji assumed he probably was.

"Yes, Orochimaru-sama. Thank you for honoring me with such an opportunity." Joji managed to keep any sarcasm out of his tone as he saluted. Orochimaru seemed to know what Joji was feeling as he showed another feral smirk that almost made the jounin shudder visibly, as if the monster was hoping for a reason to decapitate the feeble man in front of him. Joji felt like he passed a deadly trial when Orochimaru looked almost disappointed as he continued.

"You will meet with a contact in the village south of here. He's one of my spies who were keeping an eye on Jiraiya's bank accounts. He will be able to provide you with a money trail leading to where he and the Kyuubi host should be."

Joji saluted again and turned on his heels to step out of the room before he was stopped at the door.

"Here's an additional order, Yasuda-san. Do not underestimate that boy even if you split him off from Jiraiya. In fact, if you do not have the ability to capture him, kill him. He will be a nuisance in the future if he's allowed to remain free. When you return, he had better be with you or dead." Orochimaru added in an unusually serious tone as the darkness seemed to return to the center of the room and he faded into it. Joji nodded silently before he closed the door and started walking down the endless maze of hallways with only one thought.

_Yep, definitely a thing. _

**Konohagakure three days later**

Uzuki Yugao expelled a nervous sigh as she stood in front of the door to her apartment. As soon as she returned from her long mission, she showered at the ANBU headquarters and debriefed with Dragon and the Hokage in her leader's office. After she was done going over the details of her mission, she was stunned and angry when her bosses informed her of her surrogate sister's betrayal at the hands of four shinobi she spent weeks with and even trusted. Just as the purple-haired ANBU was about to crash through a closed window in a straight path to her apartment, the Hokage stopped her to explain further. She was relieved and happy that it was her friend and neighbor, Naruto, that helped Anko deal with the betrayal for the most part and her little sister was recovering quickly thanks to that.

Yugao allowed a warm smile when she remembered the Hokage explaining how Naruto stopped by his office and tried asking to wait on leaving for his training trip so he would at least stick around for Anko until she returned from her mission. It was hard for her to imagine how caring this boy- no, this young man- was about his friends yet he did it on a regular basis. While Yugao truly loved her boyfriend, Hayate Gekko, she honestly didn't expect him to go that far in making sure she was okay and she felt a little jealous of Anko for receiving such attention from Naruto. The blonde was a training fanatic and for him to willingly give up any amount of training time to look after a friend, it said a lot about what he thought of Anko. Nevertheless, Yugao was glad Naruto helped her younger sister out and, now that she earned at least a week off from missions, she would be able to give Anko her undivided attention.

Yugao unlocked the door and opened it to step into her apartment. The first thing she noticed immediately was Anko sitting on one end of the living room couch with her legs drawn tightly up to her chest. Her hair was down and somewhat of a mess and her eyes were puffy and bloodshot from an apparent lack of sleep.

"Anko-chan?" Yugao called out carefully as she gingerly stepped over to the couch and sat down next to her surrogate sister. Anko jolted when she felt the couch shift under Yugao's weight and seemed to have finally noticed her older sister was right next to her now.

"Oh, welcome back, Yugao-nee. I hope your mission went well." Anko said tiredly as her bleary eyes seemed to try to focus on Yugao's frowning face.

"You can't be missing Naruto-kun that much. It's only been a few days!" Yugao remarked incredulously as she checked out Anko's weary expression. Anko looked affronted at the suggestion she was that pathetic and shook her head.

"No, it's because I've been having nightmares."

"Oh no…please don't tell me they had something to do with your curse mark." Yugao whispered with dread gripping her insides. She didn't want to watch Anko relapse back into those horrible nightmares that kept both of them up many nights.

"No, but I think these new nightmares are worse in some ways."

Yugao sighed in slight relief and reached over to pull Anko into a tight embrace.

"I really missed you, Anko-chan. I heard about your last mission and I'm forever grateful to Naruto-kun for doing his best to help you out after what happened. I'm just sorry I didn't get back soon enough before he left. However, I have a lot of free time now so would you like to talk about it?" she whispered gently as she started raking a hand through Anko's hair, making her relax. After a long moment of silence between the two women, Anko let out a heavy sigh into Yugao's chest and began speaking softly.

"They were pretty simple dreams but I just don't like the implications. In the beginning, I was lying on the ground and dying slowly because a snake had its fangs sunk into my neck, right where my curse mark used to be. Then I see Naruto appear over me and he slowly but surely removed the snake from my neck and ripped it into pieces. He stepped back and smiled as he told me it was ok and that I should get up. When I tried to get up, I noticed a pair of giant yellow snake eyes appear in this dark shadow behind him and I knew right away these eyes belonged to that snake bastard." Anko growled out lowly at the mention of Orochimaru. Yugao hugged her tighter in response. She also noted, with a small smile, that Anko used that blonde's name a lot in private lately. It meant she hadn't thought of Naruto as a kid in a while and was only using 'gaki' to annoy him.

"I tried to warn Naruto, but nothing came out of my mouth. Meanwhile, everything around us turned dark and countless snakes appeared out of nowhere around him. They bit on to him everywhere on his body. He screamed in pain and anger as he struggled to get them off as they slowly pulled him into the shadows toward where the yellow eyes were. I was still unable to move or speak so I watched helplessly as he tried his best to fight them off but it was no good. I heard that bastard's chuckling as Naruto disappeared into the shadows under that writhing mass of snakes before I could do anything and I…woke up at that point." Anko finished as she looked up at Yugao's face, a small hint of nervousness in her eyes.

"And the worst part of all of this is that Naruto is far away right now so I can't even check to see if he was really alright."

"Anko-chan, I'm sure nothing's going to happen to Naruto-kun." the ANBU assured softly after a brief moment of silence between them. Anko snorted with a sardonic smirk.

"I keep telling myself that but I've been having the same nightmare every night since he's left. I'm tired of this bullshit and I just want to somehow hear he's still ok."

"I'm sure we'll know if something happened. Until then, just keep thinking he's doing great and dealing with Jiraiya-sama's antics." Yugao said with a chuckle. Anko smiled gratefully and hugged her older sister tighter.

"I'm glad you're back, Yugao-nee."

"You know, with all that worrying, you're acting like a housewife awaiting her husband's return. Is there something you'd like to tell me, Anko-chan?" Yugao teased as Anko blushed lightly at the insinuation. To the ANBU's surprise, Anko didn't quickly deny anything like usual.

"Don't ask me. I don't even know what the hell I'm doing around him half the times." Anko admitted quietly.

**A large clearing just outside of Land of Iron one and half weeks later**

"Oi! You sure you don't have your resistance seal turned on, gaki?" Jiraiya taunted as he easily blocked a spinning overhead kick from his godson, Uzumaki Naruto. He then grabbed the ankle and twisted it to spin the boy once before slamming him onto the ground hard enough to crater it slightly.

Naruto growled as he quickly shook off the shock and struck out with his other foot at Jiraiya's handhold on him. This made his godfather release him and he rolled backward into another ready stance.

"Like that'd make it easier to fight a man who's one and half feet taller with a seventy kilogram advantage." the boy, who was currently five feet and two inches tall and weighed forty-five kilogram, grumbled as he feinted to his right before hopping left to avoid a right smash that sunk half a foot into the ground.

"Life's not fair, gaki. Just be glad you're not fighting someone like the missing-nin Hoshigaki Kisame. He's bigger than me and just about as strong too." Jiraiya casually commented as he ripped his arm out of the ground to swing it horizontally at Naruto, who barely ducked it by an inch. As the arm swung overhead, Naruto reached out with both hands to latch on to the forearm and jumped along with the momentum. When the arm suddenly came to stop at the end of its swing, he used his inertia to swing under and up over it, as if he was using a gymnastic bar, with both of his feet out. They were aimed straight for Jiraiya's surprised face.

CRACK!

Naruto yelled in triumph when he landed on his feet then he became horrified upon seeing his godfather's head had literally fallen off. It landed with a solid thump behind Jiraiya's body.

"E-e-ero-sennin! I didn't mean to d-d-do that!" he panicked with flailing arms to the still standing but headless body of Jiraiya. He almost didn't notice the body had started to crumble. His panic turned to confusion when the pieces that fell off became dirt and the body changed colors to dark brown and melted into a large glob of mud. Naruto's confusion turned to annoyance as he shouted out to the clearing.

"Oi, you bastard! When did you switch yourself out with this **Doton Bushin**?!"

"Just be grateful I don't know the Iwa one, or else you'd have two broken ankles right now, gaki. Nice work with your style, by the way. I wouldn't have seen that coming even if I was the one still fighting you." Jiraiya commented from his hidden perch up in a nearby tree. Naruto stared up at his lazing godfather with an incredulous expression.

"You mean to tell me that I busted my ass fighting this thing for the past hour instead of the real you?!"

"**Doton Bushin **or **Iwa Bushin **are generally the closest to the user in terms of strength and power. So if you did manage to knock the clone's block off like that, then you might actually have had a chance at landing a hit on me, gaki." Jiraiya admitted. Naruto beamed at this begrudging praise before the older man continued.

"Let's pack up. That was our last spar until we're done in the Land of Iron. It's getting a bit chilly too so we'll need to get out our cold-weather stuff." he advised as he hopped down to the ground and walked to a nearby campsite. Naruto frowned in confusion as he fell into step next to Jiraiya.

"Why can't we train in Iron?"

"Land of Iron is a neutral country that trains and employs only samurai for its defense. The country tolerates the presence of shinobi as long as we're not caught using any form of chakra. No chakra means we're not going to get any training going beyond just physical stuff. I'm not even sure they'll let me into the mountains with you since I'm a registered shinobi, due to security reasons. That's why we'll have to go directly to the country's leader and ask for permission after we've done picking up your new sabers." Jiraiya explained as he unsealed a winter cloak along with a pair of heavy-duty jika-tabi to replace his wooden geta. Naruto followed suit with a cloak of his own and a pair of black combat boots. After changing, the two men were cloaked and on their way.

"About time we're going into Iron. I can't believe it took so much time to get here, no thanks to you." Naruto grumbled in annoyance.

"Oi, I can't help it if a beautiful woman deemed me unfit to earn her attention!" Jiraiya quickly defended.

"You normally recover instantly from horrific beatings at the hands of multiple angry women on many occasions. However, you just admitted this one little woman beat you up so badly in that last village you weren't able to move an inch out of the hospital bed for days afterward. I waited at the hotel room for a full day wondering if you had died face-down with your pants down around your ankles in an alley somewhere before I decided to check the local hospital." Naruto pointed out with clear suspicion in his voice as to the validity of his godfather's 'story'. Jiraiya just chuckled merrily in reply, although he was irritated inside that his godson had so little faith in his ability to die with some dignity.

"Oh believe me, gaki...there's nothing little about that gorgeous woman."

"It sounds like you know her."

"Yeah, I do. I'll explain another time, though. Border security's coming up." Jiraiya deflected to another subject as he pointed at a pair of samurai guards in the distance. As he watched his godson observe the armored samurai with curiosity, he remembered that incident with a sweat-drop.

_I didn't think I would accidentally come across Tsunade-hime in that place. It also figures she would react poorly to the news that Sarutobi-sensei believed she had enough time to grieve and he would be recalling her sooner rather than later. She even threatened that she'd get herself back into shape for whoever would come after her next, right after she took her sweet time beating the holy hell out of me. I pity the poor fool that has to bring her the summons and something tells me I'll be the one who's sent out for that, too._

**Back in Konoha at around the same time**

The bell above the door to Yamanaka Flowers rang, informing Ino, who was minding the counter, that someone entered the store. She looked up to see her friend, Hyuuga Hinata, at the door. To most people, she was displaying a kind smile like usual, but Ino knew it was subdued. She wondered to herself if the smile she returned to Hinata was the same way.

"It's been a while, Hinata-chan! Anything I can help you with?" Ino offered as she moved around from behind the counter.

"Ano…I was wondering if you had a few minutes. I was hoping to see how you were doing since the summer break began. I'm sorry I didn't come by earlier." Hinata offered an apologetic smile.

"It's ok! I heard you were hanging out with this Anko woman lately. Sort of like a little 'I miss Naruto' club, right?" Ino teased with a grin. Hinata blushed.

"I was hoping to get to know her more. I have to admit some of my old perceptions of her were incorrect. Sometimes she may do or say whatever she wanted without thinking of others but I can see why Naruto-kun trusts her implicitly." She admitted softly while poking her two index fingers together. Ino smiled warmly before letting out a sigh.

"I miss him too so I guess you can consider me a member of that little club as well. I had no idea how much it would change everything around us without someone like Naruto to liven things up. I guess it's because I started noticing how much he impacted our lives lately." Ino admitted as she leaned back on the counter and Hinata nodded softly.

"Ano…if you'd like, I think Anko-chan would be okay with you coming along on one of our outings in the near future."

"Really? If you think that's okay, I'd like to meet this person that Naruto considers as important to him as you are." Ino said with a grin at Hinata's blush. She was surprised by Hinata's soft rebuke though.

"You seem to think you're less important to him than the both of us. I feel that couldn't be any further from the truth, Ino-chan." she said with a smile. Ino blushed and was trying to sputter out a feeble denial as her friend giggled with a hand covering her mouth.

Meanwhile, Hinata sighed inwardly. To be honest, she came into the store hoping to talk with Ino about an odd dream she had involving Naruto. However, after seeing her friend's subdued smile and knowing it was because of Naruto's absence, she couldn't bear to cause the mood between them to diminish at this time. Instead, she decided to have a look around the shop for the moment with her friend pointing out some of the plants' names and what they did like she usually did for any customer.

Unknown to Hinata, Ino was having similar thoughts as she followed her friend around the shop and spoke on automatic pilot about the various plants they were looking at. She had just woken up from a dream about Naruto this morning and she was dwelling on it just before Hinata came into the shop. However, she knew her friend was feeling down about their blond friend's absence and didn't want to needlessly worry her. Instead, she decided to put that dream aside.

Lost in similar thoughts, the two longtime friends decided to push aside their bad premonitions and do their best to have fun over the summer and help each other deal with Naruto's absence.

**The next day in the capital of Land of Iron**

Naruto shivered as he pulled his cloak in tighter around himself. He was walking down a busy street with Jiraiya in the middle of a heavy snowstorm and had to once again shake his head free of the snow accumulating in his hair.

"My first experience with snow and I hate it already." he grumbled as he shook his head again.

"Quit complaining, gaki. There's always going to be someone who has it worse with snow…like me!" Jiraiya shot back as he shook his head and his much longer and thicker hair shed a large amount of snow with most of it almost engulfing Naruto completely, eliciting an 'Oi!' out of him. Before Naruto could retaliate against his godfather for the stunt with a snowball, he was stopped by Jiraiya's raised hand.

"We're here." he only said as he pointed a finger at a small and unassuming-looking shop situated among many extravagant and busy shops lining a major shopping street. A simple sign, with an outline of a katana drawn on it, hung over the worn-looking wooden door. The paneled storefront window had completely hazed over from age and no one could see into the shop from outside.

"It doesn't look like much for a supposedly famous weapon maker." Naruto cocked his head in curiosity. Jiraiya chuckled.

"He doesn't need to advertise or be flashy. He's famous enough to have samurai and shinobi rich enough to afford his prices seek him out from as far as the other side of the Elemental Nations. " he clarified as he stepped up to the door and swung it open for the both of them to get in.

Naruto was instantly in awe as soon as he stepped inside when he saw all walls were lined with weapons of varying designs. He noted a katana that was as long as Jiraiya was tall, an extremely elegant halberd, a demonic-looking fuma shuriken, and a thick but short 'hollowed-out' sword among many other designs.

"Wow." was all he could say as his wide eyes took in more weapons.

"This is the kid you got me making the new blades for, Jiraiya-san?" a deep and rough voice rumbled through the shop and Naruto snapped his head toward the other door in the room. A grizzled old man with long gray hair tied into a loose ponytail was standing there in a simple black yukata. On most of his exposed skin, the blonde was able to see scars of varying lengths and thicknesses covering him.

"Yes, he's my godson, Uzumaki Naruto." Jiraiya introduced from behind as he laid a hand on the top of Naruto's head. The old man nodded and limped into the room with his light grey eyes locked onto Naruto's blue ones.

"You're an unusual one. Most of the little hell spawns come in with their parents' money saying they want the best and flashiest. Then they go on to try to order solid gold blades and jewels covering every inch of the hilts. Of course I kicked their asses out the damn door. I'm relieved to know some kids still had some sense these days when you asked for these blades. These are the kind I make best, after all." the old man spoke as his eyes continued to bore into Naruto's. The blonde frowned in annoyance.

"So you're the stereotypical grizzled old weapon maker complaining about the 'youngsters' wanting flash but no bang." he retorted. Jiraiya chuckled and the old man laughed uproariously.

"That I may be, kid. I like your attitude and I'm Masamune. Jiraiya-san here had nothing but good things to say about you last time we spoke." the older man introduced himself. Naruto frowned at the name the old man gave.

_**So that old tradition continues, it seems. **_Kurama cut in.

_I've heard of that name in legends but it shouldn't be possible for Masamune to be alive and here in front of us._

_**Ask him. You may get an interesting tidbit of history out of this.**_

"I can't help but notice that you carry the same name as the Legendary Swordsmith." Naruto pointed out with a raised eyebrow. Masamune grinned, looking clearly impressed.

"It's not my true name. I only received this name when five or more famous weapon makers declared me their superior in skills. This is a tradition that had gone on for much longer than before recorded history, from what I heard. I never really cared about that kind of honor but my customers insisted on calling me Masamune so I gave up on correcting them otherwise. That was over forty years ago and I'm not sure I remember my real name now." he explained with a laugh at the end.

_**He's right about this being before the current civilization's recorded history. It was thousands of years ago when they started naming one top-tier weapon maker 'Masamune' for life and they choose a new one after each iteration's death. It's probably the only reason any of you even heard of the legend of Masamune even though that was from a completely different era and civilization. **_

_That's pretty interesting. Thanks for the information._

"So you somehow managed to come across and commission the expertise of the top weapon maker on this continent on your travels." Naruto pointed out with clear suspicion as he turned toward a nervous Jiraiya with a deadpan expression. Masamune laughed heartily as the Toad Sage tried to sputter out a feeble excuse.

"He didn't tell you, kid? I ran into him while we were peeking on women in this town's onsen." Masamune spoke over Jiraiya's frantic shushing. Naruto shifted his deadpan expression to the grinning weapon maker.

"Ah...so you two are big-time perverts. It figures."

"Not only that, but he also promised me an advance copy for each of the five next volumes in his Icha Icha series if I gave him a nice discount for this commission." Masamune added with a chuckle. Jiraiya fell feebly to his knees under his godson's disgusted gaze.

"Don't look at me like that, my beloved godson! It tears at my- Oh wait, that reminds me." the Toad Sage suddenly broke out of his begging to take a new-looking orange book out of his haori.

"That's the first one." he added as he held the book out for Masamune to greedily snatch it and hug it to his chest like a precious baby. All of this happened under Naruto's blank stare and Jiraiya went back to his begging as if he hadn't just done that.

"It tears at my heart if you look at me with pure disgust in your eyes!"

"I don't care, you old pervert." Naruto mumbled coldly as he looked away and Jiraiya fell to all four sobbing theatrically. Masamune chuckled heartily at their antics since he hadn't had a good laugh in a while. After a few more seconds, Naruto cleared his throat and Jiriaya stood up as if the scene didn't happen.

"Thanks for clearing that up about the legend, old man." Naruto said with a grin. Jiraiya started grumbling about no respect for elders while Masamune laughed again.

"That's a refreshing change. I'm already tired of the 'Masamune-sama' crap a long time ago. C'mon, let's show you your new weapons." He said gruffly as he tucked his new orange book inside his yukata and turned toward the rear of his shop.

A few minutes later, Naruto stood in awe before a workbench. Sitting on top of it was six of the most beautiful swords he'd ever seen. After a several long minutes of staring in stunned awe, he gingerly reached out and picked up one of the sabers as if it was a priceless glass sculpture. He then carefully ran a finger along the spine of the long and straight double-edged blade.

"The metal looks unique and I can't believe how much light the edges are picking up. It looks like you made these blades from chakra metal, old man." Naruto whispered in revere as he continued to run his fingers up and down the gunmetal-colored blade as the blue-tinted silver edges easily reflected this workroom's dim lighting into his eyes.

"You catch on quick, kid. Of course these blades were forged from chakra metal since that's what Jiraiya-san told me you wanted for your sabers." Masamune explained from behind the blonde. Naruto turned to Jiraiya with a confused expression.

"I don't remember telling you in details about my kind of sabers, Ero-sennin. I would've told you if you asked…I just don't remember, that's all."

"I guess no one's told you yet that you talk in your sleep, gaki." Jiraiya replied with an amused chuckle. Naruto couldn't help but blush in embarrassment at that before he turned back to the saber in his hands.

"Apparently you got a lot of the details. The entire hilt assembly is the way I wanted it, too." he remarked happily as his eyes searched over the silver-tinted strip of metal that formed a simple cross-guard on one side but on the other side it flowed from the top of the grip and continued in a rectangular loop to the knobbed bottom of the grip. This resulted in a simple but effective hand guard for his fingers' protection. The grip itself was tightly wrapped with dark maroon cloth for comfort.

"You can channel chakra into the blade even with the grip wrapped like that, because that's a special chakra-conducting cloth; the same stuff they use to make gloves for shinobi and samurai. The hand guard is made from a special kind of alloy metal that's so dense you could have a two-ton bolder fall on it and it wouldn't deform one single millimeter." Masamune pointed out and Naruto grinned.

"So I could punch someone in the face using this like a set of brass knuckles if he got in close." he remarked as he gripped the saber and held it straight up in front of his face.

"Yup, it's an instant good night sleep for the poor bastard."

Naruto brought the saber down slowly in a downward swing and he listened to the blade making sweet music as it cut through the air as if it was tangible itself.

"This…this is amazing, old man. This is beyond my wildest imagination."

"And Masamune-sama hasn't even gotten to the best part yet." Jiraiya cut in with a grin.

"Take a close look at where the blade meets the guard." Masamune added with a grin of his own. Naruto cocked an eyebrow before bringing the saber in his hand close to his eyes. He only took a second before his eyes found three small seals etched into the blade at the base and they widened in surprise. They were easy for anyone to miss unless pointed out.

"Metal strengthening, chakra flow regulation, and…what's this?" Naruto queried as his wide eyes narrowed on the last seal.

"Rust resistance. These seals are how these thin blades of yours will remain effective and durable for a long time to come." Jiraiya chimed in helpfully.

"Jiraiya-san here came by here a few months ago when I finished forging the blades so he would etch the seals into them. As much as I hate to admit the possibility of any of my blades falling into disrepair too early, these seals really solved that problem with the sabers. These are more durable than most blades in the entire Elemental Nations now." Masamune explained with a proud smile.

"Wow…" Naruto breathed out as he absent-mindedly took a few more test swings through the air, generating more melodious music to his ears.

"They're a bit long for me right now, but the weight's great and I'll grow into them soon enough." he remarked as he traced a slow pattern through the air with the saber to get a feel for it. The old weapon maker cleared his throat.

"There's one more thing I need to show you." Masamune announced as he limped closer to the blonde. Naruto shared a confused frown with Jiraiya, who shrugged. He didn't know about this too.

"Give that knob a twist." the old weapon maker ordered as he pointed at the knobbed bottom of the grip. Naruto slowly gripped the knob with his thumb and index finger then gave it a twist. He was surprised to feel it start to unscrew. He continued unscrewing it until a dense rod of chakra metal slid out of the grip and fell into his hand. He held it up in front of his face to examine it. Slowly his and Jiraiya's eyes widened at the implication.

"At first, I thought I would have to hollow out the grip and fortify it with a rod of densely pounded iron to help brace each saber against heavy strikes. It's not the blade that has to absorb most of the strikes, but the grip and your hand after all. However, I had an idea about using a rod of untreated chakra metal, which is just about as dense, as another layer inside the grip for bracing and also to help your chakra flow better throughout the sword. I hollowed out just enough space in the grip to safely slip that rod in along with a piece of paper when it's wrapped around it. Considering I know you two like to fiddle with seals, you can wrap a seal paper around the rod and slide it back into the grip carefully. It'll connect to the chakra blade from inside and any effect from whatever seal you put in will work on the entire saber. The other five sabers on that bench have the same thing." Masamune explained nonchalantly as he revealed this amazing feature to the two gob-smacked men. Even Kurama was awestruck.

_**I would never have thought of that! Do you realize what this means?!**_

"My dad's **Hiraishin**!" Naruto breathed out not just in response to Kurama, but also to supply that idea to Jiraiya. The Toad Sage jolted in surprise at the mention of that fabled technique and realized it would get even more deadly with these sabers.

"Gaki…if this works, this is going to make you the most feared shinobi in the nations!" he exclaimed agape before he frowned as he remembered something.

"I just noticed now. You should be more careful revealing your connection to Minato around people you just met." Naruto just shrugged as he carefully slid the rod back into the grip and twisted the knob back on.

"You only call me your godson in front of people that already know the connection so I figured the old man's safe."

"I suppose that's true." Jiraiya sighed before turning to Masamune.

"You know you've just created what's possibly the world's deadliest batch of swords. Are you sure you can live with that knowledge, Masamune-sama?"

The old weapon maker grinned toothily as he looked across at the blonde lovingly examining the sabers.

"Considering the kid seems to respect these swords already, I feel they're in good hands. They'll only be deadly to enemies that truly deserved it."

"Thanks for your vote of confidence, old man. I'm going to be a shinobi but I would still make sure innocent people get the protection and justice they deserve." Naruto assured as he carefully laid the saber currently in his hand next to its five siblings and spent the next few minutes handling and checking all of them with a reverent expression. Finally, he straightened up and turned to the old weapon maker.

"I cannot express with words my gratitude for the work you've done on these sabers, Masamune-sama." he said formally as he bowed. The old weapon maker waved the gratitude off.

"Just treat them like they're your babies and we'll call it even." he grunted out as he stood up to retrieve six pitch-black sheaths for the sabers from another workbench. Naruto frowned as he realized something.

"I don't have anything to secure these sabers to my body. Looks like I'll have to seal them away until we find something suitable."

"Wouldn't matter for now anyway. The samurai wouldn't like you having these on display until we're out of Iron." Jiraiya reminded with a bored shrug.

"That's too bad. I can't wait to try them out!" Naruto exclaimed excitedly as he took an empty storage scroll out of his orange jacket.

A few minutes later, Naruto and Jiraiya said their goodbyes to Masumane as they left the store.

"Now what?" Naruto queried as he scowled at dealing with the heavily falling snow once again.

"Now we go see Mifune for permission to enter the mountains. Here's hoping that goes well." Jiraiya commented as he and Naruto walked down the main street of the capital toward a government building in the distance with the Three Wolves Mountains looming large behind it.

**Central Military Command thirty minutes later**

"You have my permission to travel into the mountains, Uzumaki Naruto. However, I'm afraid I can't allow you to go with him, Jiraiya-san." a man in a dark purple kimino, with long grey hair wrapped in bandage at the top, a long goatee, and a moustache declared firmly from behind his desk in a large moderately-decorated office. Jiraiya scowled at the stoic Mifune while Naruto silently watched the proceeding.

"You're telling me to let the gaki go out there by himself in this kind of weather, Mifune-sama."

"This country keeps the neutrality it's famous for because we've made laws here ironclad. We cannot allow registered shinobi to travel into the wilderness for their personal agendas. This is for our sake because if we allowed someone even as trustworthy as you and word of this reached other shinobi, we would have to let all of them in too. Just one of them is all it would take to compromise our security. I am already willing to compromise by allowing Uzumaki Naruto, who is apparently only months away from registering as a shinobi, into those mountains." Mifune said firmly again, clearly not willing to budge on his position. Jiraiya let out a frustrated sigh and was about to drag this out when he was interrupted by Naruto.

"Oi, Ero-sennin, let me go. You know I can handle myself out there, especially with _her _help."

"Gaki, I don't like this. Anything could happen and I'd be unable to do anything about it stuck here in this town." Jiraiya grumbled with his scowl directed toward Mifune's stoic face.

"She told me it'd take a day to get there and most likely a few days to gather it all then another day to get back here. If I'm not back by the fifth or sixth day you can have someone sent out to look for me if it'll make you feel better." Naruto said with a determined expression.

"Please? I need this." he added. That was enough for Jiraiya as he sighed in resignation.

"Fine, you go up there, gaki. However, I need one more compromise from you, Mifune-sama." Jiraiya turned toward the samurai commander.

"What would that be?" Mifune queried with a curious eyebrow.

"Let the gaki here use his chakra however he needs to make his trip into the mountains easier. He's still not, as you have said yourself, a registered shinobi yet and I don't remember any law here not allowing chakra usage by non-shinobi." Jiraiya made his case. Mifune narrowed his eyes for a moment before sighing.

"You are correct, Jiraiya-san. There is no law against Uzumaki Naruto using his chakra so I will allow that as well."

Jiraiya clutched a fist in triumph as Naruto inclined his head toward Mifune gratefully.

**The next morning on the outskirt of the capital**

"Good luck and be careful, gaki. Don't push yourself too hard in the den and just take your time, ok?" Jiraiya advised as he stood in front of Naruto in the middle of heavy snowfall. The capital was behind them with endless terrain full of snow and trees ahead of them. The blonde was checking his clothes and equipment.

"I got it. Here…take this." Naruto said as he held out a medium-sized scroll for Jiraiya to take.

"Leaving some of your stuff with me?" the Toad Sage remarked as he tucked the scroll away in his clothes.

"Yeah, I'll have to travel light in this terrain so I'll only have some food and sleeping stuff with me. I'm also leaving most of my weapons, including the sabers, with you as well. A holster full of kunai and shuriken should be enough for anything out there." Naruto said as he patted the black holster secured around his right leg. Jiraiya nodded.

"Risky but it's probably the best option for you to get this done quickly."

Naruto then took out a pair of goggles that he rarely used before now and slid them on over his eyes. He was glad he kept them around for occasions like this since they were going to be immensely useful in protecting his eyesight against the heavy snowfall and winds.

Now all ready, Naruto and Jiraiya looked at each other for a moment before nodding their silent goodbyes. The blonde then walked off toward the Three Wolves Mountains. Jiraiya watched his godson disappear slowly into the haze of the snowstorm but he was puzzled when Naruto stopped just as he was about to fade out completely. He turned around and shouted back to his godfather.

"Oh yeah! Before I forget, don't bother searching through that scroll for my Gama-chan. I still got all of my money with me, you cheap old bastard!"

Jiraiya face-faulted into the deep snow.

"Damn it, you distrustful brat! Get the hell out of here before I come over there and kick your ass!" he shouted back as soon as he got back up, spitting out the snow in his mouth. He had to chuckle as he watched Naruto continue walking but now nonchalantly flipping a bird over his shoulder.

"That little bastard. How did he know I was going to do that anyway?" he muttered to himself before he turned and walked back into the capital to do nothing but wait anxiously for Naruto to come back.

A few minutes later had Naruto trudging through the deep snow alone as he looked up at the imposing Three Wolves Mountains in awe.

_It's just you and me, Kurama. Now where do I go? I know you're smart and wouldn't have made your den in that obvious landmark so close to a human settlement. _Naruto thought to his tenant, who balked slightly at his compliment.

_**We'll have to go farther into the mountain range north of this landmark. They may look imposing but the Wolves' barks are worse than their bites. Take a look at the tallest peak in that distance. **_

_So that's where your den is? In the most treacherous-looking mountain I've ever seen? _he thought with deadpan as his eyes made out the extremely jagged and evil-looking outline of the mountain that looked three times as tall as the Three Wolves even from this distance.

_**Yes! I also know you're going to love it when I say my den is located near the top! **_Kurama chirped with fake cheerfulness. She was clearly enjoying feeling the twitching of her host's eyebrow.

_Damn you, you sadistic fox! I guess I'll have to get started now since I'm the one carrying our asses there. No need for you to get up and do anything!_

_**Don't blame me. You can thank your father for this arrangement!**_

Naruto and Kurama continued to bicker as the blonde slowly made his way around the Three Wolves toward the rest of the mountain range.

Thirty minutes later, Kurama decided to bring their conversation to a halt for the moment.

_**Oi, now that we're far enough from civilization, go ahead and use my chakra. I did say it'd be a full day to get there but using the shroud should cut that time down by quite a bit. **_

_Good idea. _

Naruto came to a full stop in the middle of a large clearing and concentrated for a moment. He heard sizzling around him as the snow on the ground melted from the red chakra leaking out of his body to cover him. The swirling snowflakes in the air around him began melting from the heat as well. Naruto concentrated even more until three tails formed behind him and he felt immensely stronger and faster. He got down to all four and disappeared in a blur of speed. The loud sizzling continued as a chakra-shrouded Naruto cut a clean trail through the deep snow like a red-hot knife through butter. To any normal person watching from a distance, he or she would see the pristine white landscape being seemingly sliced open by an invisible beam.

**Later…**

_It's a good thing we worked to increase the duration the chakra shroud stays on without it hurting me. _Naruto commented as he stared skyward at the same mountain Kurama pointed out from fifty kilometers away an hour ago.

_**I'll have to admit, since we don't use that shroud often, I keep forgetting how fast you actually can go. This cut down a lot of time. However, now you'll have to climb up there. The entrance is located two-third of the way up to the peak on the north face. **_

_Well, I guess this is the part where I'm supposed to get down on my knees and thank you profusely for putting me through hell with the constant ravine climbing. Because of that, I'm pretty sure I can climb this thing with one pinky finger now. _Naruto thought sarcastically.

_**I did not sense sarcasm in that statement so this must mean you truly appreciate me! **_Kurama exclaimed in a mocking tone before switching to deadpan. _**Now get your ass up there.**_

A grumbling Naruto took out a pair of heavy-duty gloves to protect his hands from exposure to the cold winds and jagged rocks while climbing and he started to walk around the base of the mountain planning out the best route. Eventually he found a reasonable path leading up to the north face of the ominous-looking mountain and started to climb briskly with ease.

**Three hours later**

"Wow! I can see why you picked this place, Kurama. The view is amazing!" Naruto exclaimed aloud as he removed his goggles and rested for a minute on the only safe ledge he came across halfway up to the den's entrance. He looked toward north over the seemingly endless sea of rocky mountains and valleys covered with snow and green forests. An enormous but pristine blue lake sat deep in the middle of all this to complete the view. The clearing clouds overhead allowed beams of sunlight to shine through and caress the land. It was enough to inspire even the most cynical person in the world.

_**It's so pretty I almost forgot this view was mostly man-made. **_Except for one.

_What do you mean? No way the humans could do something like this! _

_**You forget that I lived through previous civilizations. This landscape was mostly flat only thousands of years ago and it is impossible for those mountains to have been naturally created in such a short amount of time. That lake was the wet dream of a small rain puddle back then as well. **_

_Just how the hell did we create this? _Naruto wondered before he got a chill down his spine as he listened to the fox chuckle sardonically.

_**Create? You're mistaken, Naruto. This is merely an accidental side effect of humans in a previous civilization using ultimate doomsday weapons to destroy each other in a massive war that engulfed the entire planet. That's all I will have to say about that particular conflict since I don't need to risk giving anyone, even you, any idea on what kind of weapons the humans were capable of creating in the past. I'm actually pleased with the current civilization because its progress with technology seemed to have stagnated and fractured somewhat due to the reemergence of chakra usage in humans and their reliance on it. No matter how destructive a jutsu gets, it won't ever match the raw power the old humans held with their more advanced technologies. I don't need you humans getting back to that point so soon after surviving the last cataclysm event.**_

Naruto gulped at the thought of humans like him having had the power to literally shape the planet. Kurama, for all her power, was capable of changing just a small chunk of the landscape, and only the Juubi of the legends would even come close to matching that kind of power. After spending a few quiet and sober minutes taking in the 'man-made' view with high winds whipping his blond hair around, he sighed and ended his break by standing up and slipping the goggles back on.

**Shortly after climbing again**

RIP!

A loud tearing sound surprised Naruto as he felt a tug on his right thigh. He looked down in horror as he watched his holster full of the only weapons he had on him fall away from him down the mountain. It apparently got caught on a jagged piece of the rock face he was currently climbing. He couldn't do anything to save his holster since he was still stuck to the mountain wall and there was only one thing Naruto had to say in this situation.

"FUCK!"

**Another three hours later**

An arm reached over the edge of a large flat ledge situated two-third of the way up the north face of this treacherous mountain. It pulled a body into view onto the ledge. Naruto let out a sharp exhale as he rolled away from the edge with heavy winds and snow lashing at him harshly, making his hair and cloak whip everywhere violently.

"Oh Kami, why the hell did you have to pick here of all places, you damn fox!?" the weary blonde shouted out loud into the roaring winds. Kurama let out a mirthful chuckle in his head.

_**Your reaction is precisely the reason why I selected this spot. I usually slumber for years whenever I desired it so I needed a spot like this where humans are strongly discouraged from exploring. Unfortunately for me, that didn't stop a rather persistent human from finding me when that cursed Uchiha came searching for me a hundred years ago. In any case, I appreciate you taking the effort to get up here, even if it's for my chakra. It' s nice to see this place, which I've called my home for centuries, once again. **_

_I would've brought you back here anytime you wanted even if there weren't any of your chakra here to absorb. _Naruto thought easily. Kurama was a little surprised by her host's sincere feelings and smiled. She wouldn't admit it easily but the blonde had already made his way onto the very short list of humans she truly considered trusted friends long ago.

"Alright, time to see what we've got here." Naruto said aloud after taking a few minutes to catch his breath lying on the ledge. He slowly rose to his feet, removed and stowed away his goggles, and first took a look out to the surrounding landscape. The view was still gorgeous and the higher altitude only added more to the beauty of the 'big picture', especially with the sun about to set.

"Man-made or not, this is a great view." the blonde muttered to himself before turning toward the mountain he was on. He looked up to see the jagged peak piercing through the top layer of clouds. Another two hours of brisk climbing and he would have arrived at the summit, but he was already having difficulty breathing due to the low oxygen at this altitude. He wasn't keen on compounding the problem by climbing any higher, at least for the moment since he was feeling his body rapidly adapting to the extreme conditions thanks to Kurama. After another day or two at this altitude, he would be breathing as if he was on ground level.

"I can feel you working your magic on my body. You don't need to do that since I'm pretty sure there's no reason for me to be at my peak condition at this altitude anywhere else." he said out loud as his eyes took in every detail of the summit. Perhaps if he needed a long break between the chakra absorbing sessions, he could climb up there for recreation.

_**It always helps to be prepared. This isn't much for me considering you will be subjecting your body to torture for the next few days. You may regularly call me sadistic but I honestly hate the idea of watching you go through this, Naruto. **_Kurama admitted. Naruto smiled at his friend's concern.

"I know. I'm not looking forward to this either and I'll probably think death would be sweet a day in, but we've got no choice. I want us to work together even better than before and collecting more of your old chakra will help us get closer to that goal. When we're done, we won't have to deal with this anymore since that's all of your chakra to be found. Let's just get through this as quick as possible and we'll laugh about this a few years into the future." he muttered as he started walking toward the middle of the large ledge away from the edge. Naruto's blue eyes searched the rock face for any sign of an entrance large enough to admit a giant fox but he was puzzled when he didn't find one right away.

"Is this the right ledge, Kurama?" he asked, unsure. He felt Kurama furrow her eyebrows in confusion too.

_**I do have perfect recall even after a hundred years and I'm definitely sure this is it. **_

Naruto continued to look around and his eyes fell upon an enormous pile of rock and snow that were obvious evidences a rockslide happened here. It didn't look recent either. He also noted large claw marks etched into many of the rock surfaces around him and it looked like an unnaturally large chunk of the mountain not far above him was sliced clean off. It was apparent to him Kurama did that with one of her tails.

"Destroy mountains with one swipe of the tails indeed_._" he quoted the legend about the Kyuubi in awe.

_**What do you mean by that? **_

"I can't help but ask…how's your memory when you get extremely angry?" he ventured cautiously. He also made sure to slowly look over the claw marks and the missing chunk of the mountain for Kurama to see through his eyes. There was silence from the fox for a moment before she exalted a sharp sigh.

_**Damn it. I must have destroyed the entrance in anger when that Uchiha called me out here. **_

"Do you think the rest of your den was damaged?"

_**I doubt it. My den is actually located a few hundred meters underneath your feet deep inside the mountain itself. The entrance here connects to it with a tunnel. **_

"Alright then. Guess this is the part where I have to bust the rockslide wide open." Naruto announced out loud as he stretched his limbs to prepare.

_**It would take too long and too much energy using your **_**Rasengan to **_**grind every piece of these rocks apart. Your fire jutsu would only melt the snow off. Using any of your wind jutsu would be akin to blowing nothing but hot air. There's only one thing I know of that would destroy this rockslide in almost no time at all. **_Kurama suggested. Naruto smirked, as he knew what she was talking about.

"I was getting sick of having to practice this only in our mindscape lately." he muttered as he took his gloves off and tucked them away for the moment. He brought his right hand up and grinned ferally as he watched his fingernails sharpen into pitch-black claws. They transitioned smoothly into orange-red fur that grew instantly on his digits as it spread onto his hand. He brought his left hand up to see the same transformation already happening to it as well. The fur continued to spread quickly down his forearms into his sleeves and he felt the muscles shift and grow in his arms and then his chest area began undergoing the same effect too.

Before long, his entire body grew a few inches and thickened slightly with the extra muscles and his orange outfit became strained, as it was about to rip apart under the stress. He had to unzip the jacket to release the tension. The transformation finally reached his head as the fur spread up his neck and stopped along his jawlines as if to frame his face. His hair grew thicker and slightly longer with a reddish tint, his ears became a little pointed, and his whisker marks thickened. Two identical and sleek black tattoo-like markings faded into existence on his temples that ringed his silted eyes, which inexplicitly remained sapphire blue but they had a noticeably sharp and fierce quality to them now. The most jarring feature of this transformation came when his mouth and nose area extended slightly out. Any farther outward and it would have looked like a short snout instead of still looking human. To top off the change, his fangs lengthened past his blackening lips. All of the new features combined to make him look truly wild now.

When the transformation process finally ended, Naruto was silently looking down at his clawed hands as if he was contemplating the universe's greatest question in them. Suddenly, he smiled wide, his long fangs bared for all to see, before he threw his head upward to laugh loudly to the sky. The laughter echoed around the surrounding mountains causing loose snow everywhere to vibrate slightly, threatening to turn into avalanches for a moment before the echoes stopped.

"I feel great! I'm using four tails worth and I'm not feeling any of your chakra trying to take me over like it would have with the cloak. Although, if I keep bulking up like this as we collect more of your old chakra, I think we'll need to figure out how to keep this shape. This will be very useful for speed after all." Naruto remarked in a deeper voice as he stretched out his lean but muscular body. He then walked over to a thick slab of ice etched into a nearby rock face to check himself out in the reflection.

_**As much as I think you look handsome in that form, it is still incomplete. If we had gone over the 'wall' we discussed, you would have fully transformed into a more foxlike form, complete with at least one tail and a snout. As it is now, you're still closer to human than fox. **_Kurama reminded as she enjoyed watching her container look very animalistic in the reflection, especially with his open jacket showing off well-defined muscles straining against the mesh shirt underneath. His shockingly blue eyes struck a great contrast with his feral-looking face, too. Naruto raised an eyebrow.

"You're pretty frank with me today, Kurama. I don't think I've ever heard you compliment any of my physical features until now." he observed and felt the fox shrug lazily in his mindscape.

_**Chalk that up to the fact that, aside from our busy training sessions in the mindscape, this is actually the first time we're truly alone together for an extended period of time since we met five years ago. Ever since that day, other humans were always around you so I never got around to focusing on just the two of us. We just spent this entire day talking with each other and I honestly have no reason to keep my guard up around you. Who'd believe you if you repeat most of the stuff I did or said today to anyone out there anyway? **_Kurama admitted. She wondered why she was being this open with her container too but didn't care that much since she found it comforting. The transformed blonde smiled sincerely.

"Thanks for trusting me. Even if anyone believed me, I wouldn't say anything unless you give permission." he replied with a bright smile, exposing his fangs. He made sure Kurama saw that in the reflection and she grinned a little.

_**Thank you. Well, that's enough sap. Let's blow that crap away! **_she exclaimed, a little excited to see what her transformed container would be able to do outside the mindscape. Naruto nodded before he moved over to the giant rockslide and checked around it for the best position to do what he was going to attempt.

"Oi, won't this damage the mountain itself?" he queried as he walked around the blocked entrance.

_**I wouldn't worry too much. It was able to handle a battle between that Uchiha bastard and myself for ten minutes before he forced me under his control. Believe me when I say I was blind with rage and not all that concerned about bringing the entire mountain down on him. **_Kurama clarified and Naruto had to nod in agreement at that.

Finding a good spot to one side of the rockslide with nothing but mostly open air off the mountain on the other side, he dug in his boots and took a deep breath and exhaled once. His eyes snapped wide open and became intensely focused and he inhaled again, but it was as if he was trying to suck in all the oxygen from the atmosphere this time. Just when his lungs weren't able to take any more, he channeled chakra to his lungs and expelled the strongest sonic roar he was able to muster.

An immensely powerful shockwave expanded outward from in all directions that hit the rockslide hard. It never stood a chance as the snow and most of the small pieces were instantly vaporized and the larger rocks were simply smashed into smaller pieces and pushed over the ledge's edge. They blew out into the sky a long way before falling to pepper the surrounding mountains below. The shockwave also slightly cratered the ledge and the solid mountain wall around where Naruto stood but no more damage beyond that resulted. Whatever was left of the rockslide crumbled into a more flat pile, revealing a large hole leading into the mountain. A few seconds after Naruto already expelled all of his effort, it was discovered his sonic roar also had an added effect of triggering every avalanche possible within a ten-kilometer radius of the ledge. He had to sweat-drop as he heard multiple rumblings echo around him.

"Think I did too much." he muttered to no one in particular. Meanwhile, Kurama was chuckling at what the sonic roar did since she always did enjoy some mindless destruction once in a while. Naruto turned back to the now uncovered entrance and he was happy to see there was more than enough room for him to get through. Not wasting any time, he ran inside and it didn't even take him a minute before he came upon a sudden drop-off into a massive hole that went hundreds of meters deep into pitch-black darkness below.

"I'm guessing your den's down there."

_**No duh. You know what to do.**_

Naruto nodded before he crouched down on all four then he crawled over the edge. At this point, he let his instincts take over and allowed his transformed body to move mostly on its own as he jumped, hopped, flipped, and grabbed his way quickly down along the deep hole's various handholds. After a few minutes, he almost fell straight out of the hole when it suddenly ended at the ceiling of an enormous cavern that easily held ten bijuu comfortably at the same time. A ray of light shone into the cave from a hole high up on one of the walls but it was waning due to the sun now setting.

"Oh wow…this is amazing! I never would have guessed there was a cavern this large inside the mountain." Naruto remarked as he channeled chakra into his hands and feet and started crawling across the ceiling from the hole to find his way down to the floor.

_**I bet most of the mountains in this area have large caverns in them too. **_

"That's odd. I wonder what hollowed out the mountains though. It's like they were…volcanoes?" Naruto whispered the last word in shock as he realized the implication just as he finished effortlessly crawling along the ceiling and down a wall to reach the ground.

_**I see you caught on. I suppose I'll tell you that one of the weapons those insane humans came up with gave them the ability to excite the planet's core and direct the energy at a certain location. One day, a human with a screw loose flipped a switch and…boom. Instant volcanoes rose out of the ground and wiped out every living thing around here for hundreds of kilometers. After the destruction was done, they all became dormant and went back to normal, leaving behind the man-made mountains you saw outside. **_

"What the fuck!? That's crazy!" a horrified Naruto shouted out into the cavern with the echo bouncing off the walls multiple times.

_**That's humanity for you. They fought over the most ridiculous things too. I don't know exactly what caused the last global destruction but I wouldn't be surprised if a dispute over a few kilometers of land between two countries triggered it. **_

"Why tell me this? Didn't you just say you don't want me to get ideas?"

_**I guess I just decided I trust you enough. **_Kurama finally said after a long moment. Naruto's pleased grin disappeared in annoyance when the fox continued.

_**Plus, there's no way you humans would be able to recreate the technology for many centuries at least, so I figured it's safe to tell you since you'd die long before then. **_The blonde just smirked in response and shook his head in exasperation.

"Putting that aside, your chakra is definitely still around. I can feel it permeating into my skin and there's so much of it in here. It feels like it's at least twenty times the total amount we've collected before now. I actually think this is more than enough to push us over the 'wall' finally." Naruto remarked excitedly as he walked toward the center of the dark cavern to take in his surroundings.

_**That's a lot more chakra than I expected to have remained here. I dislike the idea of you absorbing all of this even more now.**_

"We're here and I'm already in this form that's about to run out any minute. No choice but to get started now." Naruto said determinedly as he raised an arm straight up above his head.

_**Naruto, you should at least rest- **_Kurama's concerned voice was interrupted by dark blobs of chakra appearing out of thin air almost instantly as Naruto began to fire up his special absorbing technique. Just a few seconds later, the chakra ball spinning into existence above his raised hand already became much larger than anything Naruto had ever handled before.

"Shit, this is going to hurt like hell." he winced as he decided to stop the absorbing at that point. Red chakra swirled out of his raised arm to surround the giant ball of dark chakra. He heard an angry growl at that point.

_**You stubborn asshole! As soon as Hinata isn't around, you jump into this thing headfirst without listening to anyone, even me! You're being far too reckless and you know I can't do anything to help you from in here. At least realize for once it's truly just you alone out here with no one else around to watch your back!**_

"Funny, you were always up for me jumping into things headfirst and usually ranted about Hinata-chan stepping in to stop me from doing most of these stupid things." Naruto retorted as he watched his body absorb the red chakra, now thick and maroon with the dark chakra mixed in, disappear into his body. Almost instantly, twinges of pain spread throughout his body.

_**That's because those things don't involve watching my first real friend in centuries suffering extreme agony like you're about to in a moment! **_Kurama shot back with distress clear in her voice. Naruto felt a pang of guilt for his rash actions amid the growing pain.

"I see…I'm sorry." he strained to say as his body started to shake violently with waves of agony. It was all he could do to take out a small scroll with trembling hands and unseal a padded mat for him to roll out over the hard rock floor. He fell onto it thrashing as his pain reached its peak. His bloodcurdling scream ripped through the cavern and up the tunnel out into the still mountain air.

**The next morning**

Naruto groaned as he came back into full consciousness. He didn't dare to move for now due to the agony he was feeling. He slowly opened his eyes and looked around as much as he was able to without moving his head. The cavern was brighter than he remembered thanks to the growing sunlight from the hole in the wall.

"Shit. I slept through the night." Naruto murmured as he carefully moved his limbs a little to get used to the soreness. He also finally noticed a disgusting odor assaulting his nose and looked down on the mat he was sleeping on. There was a puddle of vomit next to his head.

"Huh, that's a new one. I don't remember eating that one too." he observed with a raised eyebrow. He winced when Kurama's voice boomed into his head.

_**Would you please move your gaze away from that disgusting mess!? In addition, I don't remember allowing you to vomit in my home. **_

"Okay, okay." Naruto said lazily as he slowly raised himself to his feet and stretched. He frowned as he felt the call of nature.

"I suppose it's too much for me to do as Kami intended anywhere around here?" he queried as he looked around the cavern. There was a long moment of silence from Kurama and he seriously thought he was going have to go back up the long tunnel and do it outside. He was surprised when the fox sighed in defeat.

_**Just warn me each time. I'll shut my link off so I won't have to see wherever you do your business. That way, if I ever get out of you and return here for any reason, I won't remember exactly where you shit in my home. Ugh. **_ she spoke in a disgusted voice.

Thirty minutes later, Naruto was sitting in front of a campfire created from unsealed pieces of wood and eating his third cup of instant ramen.

_**I don't suppose you have anything else beside ramen. **_Kurama said in deadpan, already knowing he didn't.

"Sorry. You may knock them, but ramen cups are great for storing in large bulks. I got a hundred of these sealed away in this little scroll. They're perfect for if there are absolutely no other options for food…like here in this dark and empty cavern." Naruto explained while the fox snorted.

"Plus, it's only for a few days. I'll go back to my regular diet when we get back to civilization." he assured.

_**Ok…fine. I'll live with that since I've made your body perfect with all the proper nutrition you've had over the years and I'm sure a few days of that disgusting slop won't ruin it. **_Kurama grumbled and Naruto chuckled aloud.

"Look at us. We're bickering like those old married couples we see in public."

_**Honestly, I'm not sure I see a lot of differences between them and us. The seal did join our souls together for the rest of your life. **_

"I suppose you're right. Sorry I don't even remember the wedding ceremony thirty minutes after I was born." Naruto joked easily with a grin. Kurama was surprised by his carefree reply.

_**You don't sound disturbed by that idea. **_she observed in a nonchalant tone but she was secretly interested in his view on this. Naruto shrugged lazily.

"Why would I be? You got your quirks, but you're also awesome. You're smart, you sometimes like to have fun like I do, you help me out whenever I needed it, and you put me in my place if I deserved it. The list goes on. In fact, from what I've read in books about wives, you have many qualities men look for in an ideal wife if they're willing to look past the fact you could just squash them when you get annoyed." he made his points to Kurama's growing astonishment. Did he really think this way about her?

_**What about the fact that I'm a hundred-meter-tall demon fox with quite a temper and a penchant for mindless destruction once in a while? **_

"Well, I did think you were majestic and a little scary when I first saw you. However, it's been years since and do looks really matter if we're friends already? As for your temper and other things, I did mention your quirks, but I know I have mine too. For example, I know you don't like my ramen addiction and it bugs you that I'm still using my sleeping cap even after all those years, to name a few. It's how we're willing to overlook these quirks to work together that made this to be what I think is a good partnership between us." the blonde explained as he finished his current cup. Kurama was stunned to find out exactly how he felt about this arrangement between them. Not once has he thought that she was supposed to be under his control and he truly saw themselves as equals.

_**Kami, we really do sound married. **_ she murmured in shock.

"I figured you would be disgusted by that notion, considering I'm a puny human." Naruto spoke in curiosity but Kurama scoffed.

_**Don't be ridiculous. It's true I have a poor few of humanity, but even I understand there are some that don't deserve to be saddled with my general opinion of humans as a whole. You, of course, proved yourself worthy over the years. I may not have liked the idea of having been sealed into you at first but I've learned to live with it. I doubt I would've met you otherwise.**_

"Wow. That's a great honor and thank you." Naruto smiled brightly.

_**That said, if you ever repeat any of this to anyone else, I would be very happy to remind you why a puny human should fear a hundred-meter-tall demon fox. **_she threatened with a deathly calm voice. It didn't bother Naruto though as he chuckled.

"You don't have to tell me. Anyway, I think we've put this off long enough. I need to get started absorbing more of your old chakra since we only have four or five days before Ero-sennin decides to look for us." he said. He knew right away Kurama didn't like the new direction of this conversation when he felt her scowl harshly.

_**You're willing to go through this again even after last night?! Even though you took in a large chunk already, it barely made a dent in the amount of chakra left in this cavern. I shouldn't have told you about this place. **_she grumbled angrily. There was silence between them for a moment before Naruto sighed.

"Ok, if this really bothers you, I'll stop."

_**What the hell are you talking about?**_

"Anko-chan didn't like it either and we got into a spat about that. I don't want to push this too far with you either. I honestly don't want to give this up but if this is really too much for you, we'll stop. This isn't the only option and we can get stronger other ways. We'll just tell Ero-sennin and the others that there weren't that much left here and it was all I could collect. They won't ever know." Naruto laid it out for his friend. There was dead silence in the cavern as he awaited Kurama's answer.

_**You'd do that? **_

"If you want me to, I will."

Kurama knew he was serious since she could feel his thoughts and emotions. For one long second, she was tempted to take him up on that offer and forget about this. However, she also knew she would regret asking him to turn back at this critical moment. She sighed deeply.

_**No…finish the job. I'm sorry I doubted your ability to deal with this. **_

"Thank you for believing in me, Kurama." Naruto said with a smile. "You don't have to stick around through these sessions if you don't want to. Just cut the link and check on me once in a while." he offered.

_**No. You're going to need my help. I know you will try to do too much in too short an amount of time and it'll be my job to make sure you pace yourself. **_

"Alright then. Let's get started." Naruto declared as he stood up and stretched to prepare.

**Few hours later**

"Ugh…why is it wet?"

_**You fell unconscious and rolled over into a pool of your own vomit. What did I say about throwing up in my home?**_

"Ew…gross. And how the hell is that even there?! All I ate was ramen!"

**After session eight**

"Ah-ha! I didn't throw up this time!"

_**No, but you did manage to piss yourself.**_

"Goddammit!"

**Second day after session thirteen**

"Yes! No vomit or piss!"

_**Unfortunately, you shit your pants this time.**_

"What?!" Kurama burst out laughing.

_**I'm just fucking with you! I wish there's a mirror nearby because your expression has to be priceless!**_

"…Fuck you."

**Third day after session twenty-three**

_Kami, death would be so sweet right now. _Naruto thought since it hurt so much to even speak. He was lying spread-eagle on his back staring straight up at the ceiling.

_It even hurts to just blink_.

_**Good job, Naruto. **_

_What for? For understanding exactly how a piece of well-tenderized steak feels?_

_**Before we started this, you admitted that you would wish for death a day in. You managed to last until the third day before giving in.**_

_It's only been three days?! It feels like it's been sixty. I'm not sure if I should take the credit though. I've been so out of it that I was only able to form rational thoughts just now._

_**Well, I did think it was strange when you asked if a giant fox and a human could fuck. **_

"WHAT?! Ow!" Naruto flinched when he instinctively shot up into a sitting position, generating new waves of pain throughout his body. He heard Kurama laughing uproariously.

_**Just kidding! You were just blabbing gibberish most of the time.**_

_Damn it! Is it really that fun to do this to me?_

_**It's certainly more fun than watching you do nothing but suffer. **_

_Touché. _

_**I'm putting a stop to this. Eat and sleep this off and we'll finish tomorrow. Afterward, you will crawl into your sleeping bag and not move even a finger until the next day. Meanwhile, I'll work to heal your body's damages as best I can in the time we have until then. **_

_Why? I can tell there's not much charka left here…maybe three or four more times. It's not even night yet!_

_**You skipped too much sleep. Your pain receptors are at their most sensitive. You were actually insane for most of the day from the agony and lack of sleep. Quite frankly, your condition right now is atrocious and a single gnat would kick your ass easily. With our luck, it's likely the very last session will finally kill you from shock if you continue at this pace. **_

_It won't happen. We'll finish this earlier than expected and be back in town by tomorrow evening. Back to my proper diet instead of another day of watching me eat more ramen, and no more doing my business here either._

_**Tempting but I'm drawing the line here. Just rest and recover so you'll survive the last few sessions easily. You have Hinata, Anko, and many others waiting for you to get back to them. Would you really risk making them upset by choosing the worst path with a high risk of death when there's a better option elsewhere? **_

_I hate it when people use my friends to guilt-trip me. _

_**I know, and you only hate it because it works very well on you. I told you I will make you pace yourself and I'm willing to go that far. **_

_(Sigh) All right, you win. _

**Fifth and final day on the mountain's ledge**

Naruto climbed over the remains of the rockslide out of the den's entrance and took in a deep breath of the fresh mountain air. He then shivered against the cold and harsh winds while heavy snowflakes belted his face. He pulled his cloak in tight around himself and adjusted his goggles.

"Kami…it feels great to be out here. Thanks again for slowing me down. I really needed that and I'm now mostly recovered thanks to you, Kurama." he said aloud into the mountain air.

_**You have no idea how much I looked forward to this moment. I was already sick of watching you put yourself through that torture before it even began. However, are you sure you're able to handle yourself? We didn't expect absorbing all that chakra would have screwed with your chakra control so much for the moment. **_Kurama said apprehensively. Naruto stared down at his right hand as if it betrayed him. He felt his chakra swirling like crazy throughout his entire body and it was very difficult for him to do any molding properly right now.

"Nothing we can do about that. I can feel this is temporary and I should be able to use ninjutsu again soon. It's most likely my body catching up with your extra chakra in my system and I think this is also a pretty good sign that I finally got over the 'wall'. "

_**I hope so because I would hate to find out the past five days of hell for you were all for nothing. In the meantime, you can only do nature manipulation with your own chakra and even your control of my chakra is spotty at best. **_Kurama reminded.

Naruto sighed as he slowly walked over to the edge of the large ledge and looked down at the ground level a long way under him. He cracked his neck twice to psyche himself up.

"Standing around isn't going to do anything. I know I'm well enough to make my way back down this godforsaken mountain so let start with that."

**Soon in a pub back in the capital**

Jiraiya sat slumped over at the bar as he took a sip from his fifth cup of sake. He was at his wits' end about his godson. Naruto were supposed to be back today or tomorrow and he just needed to wait a bit longer before he gave in to his desire to form the largest rescue party this world has ever seen and go searching.

Instead, he distracted himself by doing what he did best. Information gathering had its use even when Jiraiya had no intention of spying here in this country. Who knew what tidbits he would overhear even in this out-of-the-way location? So far, that was a bust. No relevant information was forthcoming and he was about to pay off his tab and return to his hotel room to stare at his next 'Icha Icha' volume's manuscript with absolutely no desire to write anything as long as his godson was out there in the wilderness.

"Oi, you hear about Hiro?"

Jiraiya's ears perked up and subtly glanced over his shoulder to see two off-duty samurai conversing at a nearby table. He decided he would listen to this one before stopping for the day.

"I only heard he was spooked about something."

"Yeah, he was. I thought he was nuts when he said he saw a few ghosts in Kashima Forest along the eastern border during one of his patrols. He said he saw a few white blurs slip between trees and when he blinked they disappeared. He even took his time to check for any trace everywhere but found nothing."

"Really? Doesn't seem like a big deal. Could be an effect of whiteout with all the snow around here. "

At this point, ice-cold dread gripped Jiraiya's heart as he quickly shot up off his stool at the bar and walked briskly out of the pub. He tried to convince himself he was just being paranoid about this but he didn't survive being a shinobi for so long by ignoring his hunches.

**Ten Minutes later in Mifune's office**

"I understand your concern, Jiraiya-san. I will prepare to send out several patrols in the direction the child went when this blizzard lets up. I still cannot allow you into the wilderness, however." Mifune said firmly as he stood up and walked behind his desk chair to look outside through a large window. A heavy blizzard was ongoing, nearly washing out the sight of the Three Wolves in the distance. Jiraiya growled lowly in frustration.

"I don't have time to wait for the blizzard to die down! From my personal experiences, when you're out on a patrol and you see something unusual, it almost always involves shinobi. At least allow me, another shinobi, to deal with this threat directly. The eastern border is also the closest to where the gaki said he was going." Jiraiya said urgently as he slammed a palm on the desk. Mifune turned his head from the window and fixed Jiraiya with a piercing glare.

"You make it sound like this child is valuable to other shinobi. Did you bring this Uzumaki Naruto into my country knowing this may have attracted unnecessary troubles?"

"There may have been one or two interested parties but only the Hokage and I knew that we were coming here. Gaki didn't find out until we left our village."

"If that's the case, then you have nothing to worry about regarding your secrecy and perhaps you're just letting your imagination run away from you." Mifune suggested cautiously as he returned to his seat in the desk chair. Jiraiya scowled.

"I don't care. I've got a bad hunch and I intend to follow up on it, no matter what ends up happening. Naruto is important to me and I let him go out there with minimal equipment. I need to be sure he's safe right now and, frankly, you're preventing me from doing what I need to do. I don't want to wait till tomorrow. I'm marching out there in the next few minutes, with or without your permission." Jiraiya declared calmly as his determined glare battled with Mifune's firm stare. A long moment passed between the two men before Mifune broke eye contact and sighed.

"You leave me no choice." he muttered as he stood up and reached for his sheathed katana propped up against the desk. Jiraiya immediately shifted into a ready pose, watching for any movement. The samurai leader was not to be underestimated.

"I tried to reason with you but you wouldn't listen. A small battle between us ensued." Mifune spoke calmly as Jiraiya heard a sharp slicing sound and a click but he didn't even see the katana unsheathe. Half-expecting his body to be falling to pieces at any moment, the Toad Sage was surprised when he watched the large desk collapse in two halves instead.

"Wha-?" he sputtered out at the confusing change in this situation.

"You dodged my initial attack." Mifune continued with an amused smirk since he had caught Jiraiya unaware. The Toad Sage scowled, as he knew he wouldn't have dodged anything at that moment. He was going to be more alert next time, but he knew he got away with his body intact this day. Only his pride was damaged but that would be repaired soon enough.

"You weren't interested in battling me, instead yelling you would save the child yourself, and you escaped into the wilderness. I would make it convincing, if I were you." Mifune added the last sentence in stage whisper. Jiraiya smirked as he finally caught on to what this samurai was implying.

"I must warn you since I have to uphold the laws here. You will be banned from entering this country for some time for 'breaking the law', but Uzumaki Naruto will still be allowed in, of course. You have one full day to exit this country before we will search the mountain range to resolve this our way." Mifune said seriously. Jiraiya sent a grateful smile toward the samurai.

"Thank you, Mifune-sama… for Naruto, it's worth it. You said to make it convincing?" he said mischievously before he disappeared in a blur of speed. Mifune was surprised when his katana was knocked out of his usually sure grip and it clattered to the other end of the office. He scowled a little, his own pride wounded.

"I'm going to save my student and nothing you do or say is going to stop me!" Jiraiya shouted dramatically as he reappeared on top of the desk's remains. Just as Mifune's samurai guards burst into the office with their swords out, the Toad Sage leaped and smashed through the large window, with a thunderous explosion of shattered glass, into the roaring blizzard beyond. He quickly put his white winter cloak on in mid-air and disappeared instantly as soon as his feet hit the ground several stories down. Roaring winds whipped all of the curtains and paper in the office into frenzy. Mifune let out a dejected sigh as he picked up his katana.

"Damn it. I forgot about the paperwork. Now it's going to take even longer to do them." he muttered to himself as he secured his katana to his waist.

"Mifune-sama, are you alright!?" one of the guards asked frantically as the others ran to look out the open window.

"I am unharmed. Jiraiya-san was only concerned about the welfare of his student, who may be in danger from unknown elements out in the wilderness." the samurai leader answered calmly.

"We need to go after him!"

"No, the blizzard is too thick right now. Searching is useless if we're dealing with shinobi in this weather. In the meantime, please repair the window and we will go out tomorrow instead." Mifune ordered firmly. His samurai obeyed quickly and set about fixing up the office. Mifune frowned as he mulled over the recent development.

_I hope your hunch is wrong, Jiraiya-san. I sense greatness in that child and it would be tragic for his life to end prematurely in the lonely wilderness. _

**Some time later at the base of Kurama's mountain**

"Wow, this blizzard's picking up. On a related note, I hate snow even more." Naruto commented as he began making his way through the deep snow away from the mountain. He then tried bringing out Kurama's chakra to form a cloak and he only managed to get up to one tail before it wouldn't obey his command anymore. Despite that, the shroud was still corrosive enough to melt the snow around him with a hiss.

"Guess that'll have to do for now."

_**Watch yourself, Naruto. There's no telling what'll happen with my chakra at the moment. **_

"Got it." he replied as he got down to all four and dashed to full speed, leaving behind a trail of melted snow in his wake.

It was only ten minutes later when he came upon a curious sight.

_Oi, it's been five days, right? Lots of snow and wind in all that time and yet there's this. _ Naruto observed for his tenant as he looked at the same path that he himself cut through the snow as he made his way toward the mountain five days ago. His logical thinking dictated that this path should have been filled with new snow or at least blown over by the harsh winds.

_**The chakra shroud must have been more corrosive to the environment than we expected. It's not like you were concerned about regulating the chakra's density since there were no soul around for miles. Look, you can see the snowflakes melting when they get closer.**_

_It looks like the radiation's starting to die out now, though. However, I don't like this because this points an arrow straight at us for anyone curious enough. _Naruto thought as he looked around the landscape. The blizzard was still going strong but something felt off to him, as if this area was actually too still despite the roaring blizzard whipping around him. Feeling a little disquieted, he primed his chakra shroud for any possible attack. He siletntly cursed his luck with his weapons as his right fingers deftly felt for a holster on his right thigh only to remember it was lost on the mountain.

_**I'm getting a bad feeling about this, Naruto. You need to hurry and get back to your godfather. You can't handle any major threat with the way you are right now.**_

_You're right. Unfortunately, I think something's off already._

At that moment, the deep snow surrounding Naruto exploded outward, revealing ten masked shinobi wearing white cloaks with white outfits underneath. They immediately surrounded the briefly surprised Naruto. However, that didn't last long before he recovered his composure and snarled fiercely at the group before him. A nin to his right jumped at him, ready with ninja wire in his hands to tie him up. Naruto calmly held his open right hand out at the airborne nin. A chakra claw shot out and grabbed onto the surprised nin's chest. The blonde cranked up the intensity of the chakra's corrosion and he heard loud hissing just before the nin screamed in extreme agony due to his chest being savagely burned away. He then swung his chakra arm around at the other nin, using the screaming nin as an improvised wrecking ball.

They recovered from their surprise at the boy's quick response with enough time to jump out of the way. Naruto tried to make another swing with the chakra arm but it just dissipated on him without warning. He loudly cursed when his shroud followed suit and he was left feeling tired and almost defenseless. The doomed nin dropped to the ground still screaming hoarsely as he clutched at his severely charred chest.

"He's done for. Someone silence him before the entire country hears him! The rest will go after the target!" the apparent leader of the group ordered as they shifted their positions around to surround the blonde again. One of the group quickly moved over to the mortally wounded nin and ended his screaming with one stab of a kunai into his skull.

"Why are you doing this?" Naruto growled out as he desperately tried to bring Kurama's chakra back out or even to mold anything with his own charka.

"Nothing personal, kid. Just orders. Oi, get him!" the leader yelled out and a nin from behind Naruto struck with a kunai aimed at disabling one of his arms. Naruto saw this coming and twirled around in order to deflect and grab the stabbing arm with his hands. Using the nin's momentum, he pivoted on his heels and swung the nin like a blunt weapon into another enemy who tried to move in after the initial attack. As a bonus, the kunai accidentally stabbed the second nin in the process, making him yelp in pain. Naruto grinned ferally in triumph as he struggled to keep solid footing in the deep snow.

_**Behind you!**_

Naruto tried to duck, but it was too late. A powerful kick from Joji caught him on his side, fracturing several ribs in the process, and he was sent flying some distance before landing roughly facedown in deep snow. He groaned as he tried to ignore the pain from his ribcage and get up but he was quickly pinned to the ground from behind, his face being grinded harshly into the frozen snow.

"That little fucker got me in my stomach! Let me kill him, Joji-taichou!" the stabbed nin growled out between pained pants.

"You let that happen to you, moron! Besides, our orders are to capture the kid alive. Go fix your wound somewhere else and cool off!" another nin growled harshly. Naruto tried to push himself off the ground even with all the weight on him but someone above him wouldn't have that as he slammed the blonde's head back down onto the packed snow hard, stunning him momentarily.

"Ah-ah. That's enough out of you. Be a good boy and go to sleep." the leader's voice chided playfully from behind. Naruto struggled valiantly even as he felt a prick in his neck. However, whatever sedative they injected into him was working quickly.

_**Naruto! I'll wake you up as soon as I… **_was all he heard before he fell into darkness.

**Later that evening in Sunakagure**

Sabaku no Temari growled as she savagely tossed the book she was reading at a wall across the room from her. It hit with a loud whump before falling harmlessly to the floor.

"Damn it!" she snarled as she shot up from her reading chair and began pacing her bedroom. She had recently returned home from a mission to eliminate some bandits earlier in the day. It was completed but there were some collateral when an innocent civilian got caught in the crossfire. That incident by itself shook her but she was even more horrified to discover it was a blond-haired boy with blue eyes that was around twelve.

_The same age as- _she didn't want to finish that thought as she remembered the unnamed boy's dead and dull blue eyes staring up into her horrified teal eyes. She grunted in frustration as she turned and glared at the book on the floor as if it was something disgusting. The story she was reading in hopes of pushing the mission out of her mind had just killed off her favorite character, which was a blond man with blue eyes. She walked briskly over, picked up the book, and, with an angry yell, threw it out her open bedroom window into the night air.

Temari took a calming breath as she leaned on the sill and stared out into the distance at the rolling dunes of the desert with the star-filled night sky as its backdrop. The full moon shone down on everything in her sight. She knew she was being immature and irrational, but she didn't care. She couldn't help but give in to the very certain feeling in her heart that something bad was happening to Naruto.

A soft whump reached her ears and she turned around with a soft gasp. After quickly searching the room for a moment, her eyes focused on the knitted doll of Naruto lying in a grotesque heap at the base of the dresser it was sitting on. It apparently fell off by itself, which only compounded Temari's inner turmoil.

"Oh no…please let all of this be my imagination." Temari whispered to herself as she slowly walked over to pick up the doll with trembling hands.

**In the wilderness of Iron at around the same time**

…_**aru….ruto….Naruto? **_Kurama's gentle voice was the first thing Naruto heard as he slowly came out of his unconsciousness. As soon as he remembered what happened, he immediately kept his eyes closed and his breathing even as if he was still unconscious.

_**Good. Now listen here…your hands are tied and you have one guard sitting to your left watching you in a tent. The other eight are split into three other tents just outside this one. They had to stop for the night because the last nin you wounded wasn't able to stop his stomach's bleeding without requiring assistance. That is the only reason we're still here in Iron and close enough for a possible rescue from Ero-sennin or anyone else. **_

_Thanks for the update. Your ability to sense and hear everything even while I'm out cold is a huge help. How's my body? I think it's hurting more than it should be if they were just trying to capture me. _

_**Unfortunately, we have bad news. That shinobi you wounded was angry and cowardly enough to attack you while no one was looking. He broke your left ankle and fibula before they pulled him off. I managed to mend the bones along with your ribs before you woke up but you will be somewhat hobbled for a while longer. **_

_If we get into another battle, please point me toward him. I need to teach him a lesson in how to take it like a man. _Naruto thought with a growl.

_**I'd be happy to help, but the important thing is to escape and find help. It's likely Ero-sennin will be searching for us now, or at least soon enough. **_

_They're pretty sure of themselves if they think they only needed to keep only one man around me with just my hands tied. I'm not even feeling a chakra restriction seal on me too. _he thought in an insulted tone but Kurama chuckled smugly.

_**You can thank me for that. When the morons sedated you, they were confident that it would keep you out for three days. It only took me several hours to flush the sedative from your system. No one is expecting you to even twitch for days. In addition, you will be immune to further injections.**_

_Nice! You're awesome, Kurama! Anything else I need to know? _

_**Naruto…it's Orochimaru who sent these men after you. I heard them talking about it. Not only that, but someone tipped that hebi-teme off about you leaving the safety of Konoha for the summer. That means someone in Konoha passed that information on to him. It's the only way for any of this to have happened. **_

_Shit. Not even out of the academy yet and we already have the bastard's interest. I'm not sure if I should be proud of that or cursing my luck. We'll worry about the informant in Konoha later. However, even if he knew I was leaving Konoha, only Ero-sennin, Jiji-san, and I knew we were heading for Land of Iron. How did they follow us here? _

_**If we survive, you can tell Ero-sennin a big fat 'I told you so.' These guys were laughing about how easily they followed his money trail to here, even with a fake name. **_

_Oh…OH! That old pervert is never going to live this down! Who the fuck would use 'Tanoshii Otoko' except for him?! Every inn clerk from Konoha to here gave us weird looks! _he ranted while Kurama chuckled.

_Anyway, we need a plan to get out of here. Also, the leader might know something more about what's going on so if we somehow get the drop on him, remind me to take his head back to Ino-chan's dad. He'll be able to scan the brain for any possible clue._

_**Considering I sense his strength to be jounin-level, that'll be a miracle with your body the way it is now. In the last few hours, you have restored some minimal chakra control but I wouldn't put any faith in your jutsu being successfully executed every time. **_

_How's my nature manipulation? _Naruto asked when he had an idea forming in his head.

_**Passable but just about useless without your ninjutsu. Why? **_

_Remember when I had to split a waterfall in half? How well would it work on direct contact with ropes and...humans? _

_**The ropes will be easily cut. As for humans, the result is predictable and spectacularly messy.**_Kurama was starting to catch on to what Naruto was planning.

_**How would you lure the guard close enough without alerting him? **_she added her thought. Naruto grinned inwardly.

_Remember when I was driving Iruka-sensei up the wall the entire day a couple months ago? _

Kurama did remember and she grinned toothily.

A few minutes later, a bored guard named Maro was doing his best to suppress a yawn. He honestly didn't see the point of watching over the sleeping boy lying on the floor in front of him. That sedative was enough to render anyone as close to death as it was possible for days. He thought it had more to do with his comrade attacking the defenseless boy a while ago and he was just there to prevent another incident like that. Akio was always a bit crazy but he really went off the deep end this time with that stomach wound. The captain, Joji, had to beat him into submission to finally make him give up on going after the boy. Maro shivered at the thought of the target dying during transport back to Otogakure since Orochimaru would have made his displeasure known.

A long and sharp hissing sound snapped Maro out of his thoughts. He stiffened as he shifted his gaze all over the tent looking for any visible threat. Another hiss made his eyes widen in alarm. He looked carefully at the boy sleeping in front of him and didn't notice anything off about him, so something else had to be causing that noise. Just as he was wondering what the hell was going on, Maro finally pinpointed the location on the next sharp hiss. It was coming from somewhere on the opposite side of the unconscious boy from him. Perhaps it was an animal interested in the prisoner. Maro couldn't allow any more harm to come to this boy so he had to check it out. Cautiously, he got to his feet and inched close enough to hover over the prisoner to see what was making that noise on the other side. That was the last thing he ever did.

The 'unconscious' prisoner had to fight to stay still as the guard got into position. The hissing sound from earlier was Naruto using his wind chakra to cut the rope binding his wrists together out of the guard's sight. It also had the added benefit of sounding more animal-like than artificial so any one hearing it wasn't able to pinpoint the exact origin right away. It drove Iruka crazy when Naruto kept generating that hissing sound throughout the entire class day one time. His wrists now free, he struck when the guard got close enough,

Naruto's left hand shot up to wrap tightly around the guard's throat. At first, the guard didn't seem to comprehend the fact the supposedly heavily sedated and unconscious boy laying on the floor underneath him was now moving and completely wide awake. His eyes had just locked with the boy's emotionless blue eyes before he knew no more when Naruto shot his strongest burst of raw wind chakra straight into the guard's throat.

A copious amount of dark blood and pieces of sliced bone and tissue sprayed violently onto the tent's roof above the now-deceased guard. Naruto gasped and shuddered as he saw the grisly sight and watched the life fade from the guard's eyes up close. He thought he steeled himself enough for this but he realized that no one was ever going to be completely prepared for killing someone in such a gruesome fashion when it was only his second direct kill so far in his life. He almost groaned out in disgust at the strong smell of blood and the feel of the warm and viscous liquid splashing onto his hand gripping the man's completely shredded throat. The body immediately fell limp in his grip and he had to push him to the side to avoid being pinned to the floor by the dead weight. He shuddered again at the feel of the cooling blood running down his left arm then he started to hyperventilate and was about to retch out loud. He also could hear the blood dripping from the tent's roof as well. He just wanted to scrub every inch of his body until the skin fell off and get away from this horrific scene that he created himself.

_**Naruto! You need to calm down. You did just kill someone up close and gruesomely and I understand how hard it is to deal with that quickly since I can feel your emotions and thoughts. However, please listen to me here. You need to put this aside quickly and get out of here. They will notice something's wrong soon enough. I'm saying this for your sake. **_Kurama spoke in a soothing but urgent tone. Naruto had to take a deep breath to calm down and stop the hyperventilating before it got worse. He then took a quick second to wipe as much blood off himself as he was able to with a nearby piece of cloth.

_I know that! You keep warning me about this moment but experiencing this for real is a whole different thing! _Naruto thought back as he climbed over the dead body while suppressing another retch. Before he could get started on searching the tent for anything usable that wasn't covered in too much blood, cold dread filled him when he noticed there was total silence outside this tent. In the time since he woke, there was always an undercurrent of random conversations between the eight other shinobi out there. It was obvious to him that they noticed something was up. Soon, hushed murmuring began and they were apparently getting suspicious.

_**Shit! Get out of there!**_

Naruto wished he had more time since he was only in his orange outfit with no cloak against any kind of cold weather outside and no weapon of any kind. However, he knew staying here any longer would lead to nothing but trouble for him. Making his decision, he quickly started up another round of wind manipulation and pushed it into his right index finger. He then raised it up to the rear wall of the tent opposite the flaps and concentrated. With a low hissing sound, a clean cut appeared where his finger touched and he trailed it down the canvas to make the opening larger. Having made enough room, he squeezed through the cut and slipped away silently as fast as his injured leg allowed just a few seconds before the other enemy nin ripped the flaps open and made the grisly discovery. An angry roar and some urgent cries of disbelief followed Naruto into the silent moonlit night.

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**Well, I don't have much to say about the chapter you just read since I'm going to save it for the end of the next chapter, which is going to be pretty exciting. I can only hope at this moment you enjoyed this chapter and can't wait to see the last half coming up in a few days. Moving on...**

**POLL ****ANNOUNCEMENT**

**Ok! Before I begin, I have decided to make the harem SIX...that's right SIX...girls instead of the five I originally planned. I realized after reading most of your reviews and PMs lately that most of you were pretty convinced of Ino's place on the harem and was going to vote her in. I felt like I influenced your opinion too much by writing her in such a different light over the past couple chapters even though it was only my intention on 'priming' her up story-wise in case you guys vote her in. I also liked writing her a lot that it would feel strange to me if I just stopped writing her as a candidate for the harem if she didn't get the votes. So I'm going to go ahead and add her to the harem. However, you guys would still be able to vote on two girls like promised. Ino is in the harem so she won't be on the ballot. **

**Plus, six matches the number of a certain new weapon this chapter just introduced. When I change the story's title soon enough, I think it'll be related to the number six somehow to set up a connection between Naruto's six sabers and his six girls. **

**That's it. Look for the truly epic conclusion in a few days! :-)**

**P.S. If you're wondering what 'Tanoshi Otoko' means...it's basically translated to 'pleasant man'. Only Jiraiya...am I right, huh?**


	17. The Hunt Pt 2 and the Aftermath

**And here's the epic finale of this story arc. This will change a few things in the story from now on and I can only hope you will enjoy everything as much as I enjoyed writing them. I'll keep this short and leave the rest of my notes for the bottom. **

**Lots of thanks goes to LoverofLemon for his great help on making this as good as we could for all of you. **

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**WARNING: This story will contain mature language, sexual themes, and graphic depictions of violence and gore.**

**DISCLAIMER: I do not own Naruto or any of its characters.**

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**Chapter 17: The Hunt Pt. 2 and the Aftermath**

**Land of Iron's wilderness at the edge of a forest **

**Thirty minutes after escaping the enemy camp**

Uzumaki Naruto just finished vomiting onto the snow-covered ground as he leaned on a tree for support. The lingering memory of what he did to that guard and the scent of blood still on him finally got to him and he just had to stop his running to let it all out. For some reason, it made him feel slightly better, as if he was purging the emotions from that incident. Wiping his mouth, he shivered violently against the cold wind in just his orange outfit. The blizzard from earlier in the day had passed on and it was now a clear night with the full moon shining brightly down on the land as far he could see. This was bad news for him since this was the worst possible night to try to escape. His pursuers would be able to see him at night and chase after him almost right away instead of waiting until daylight. They just needed some time to break camp and had most likely sent one or two nin after him in the meantime. However, that wasn't even the worst thing as he noticed something about his surroundings.

_Goddammit! I just picked the worst direction to run in. We're going higher back toward the mountain range we just came from this afternoon! That means we're going farther away from any friendly person and there would be less trees for cover the more I keep going in that direction. I can't just change directions though…they'll catch up. _He thought frantically. Kurama was silent for a long moment as she was apparently thinking about something. She finally let out a sigh.

_**Naruto, we know they most likely sent an advance scout or two after us and they're easily tracking you because of the footprints you're leaving in the snow. Someone will catch up soon enough no matter how hard you try to keep running. **_

_So I'll have to hide somewhere and hope they'll overlook me. _

_**We cannot take that chance. If we get the advantage, you have to eliminate them. It'll slow the rest of them down when they catch up, putting some more distance between them and us.**_

Naruto frowned.

_So you're saying I need to kill again. The last one was…can I even do it now? I don't have much confidence that I can do it again without hesitating. _Naruto thought nervously with a shudder at the memory again. Was this what every shinobi had to go through? It was easy enough for him to have done it with his chakra claws since it was from a distance. However, to actually be up-close and watch a person's life disappear from the eyes because of him was jarring to say the least.

_**Naruto, it's not easy doing the deed anytime and you'd have to be insane to actually enjoy killing. However, I'm going to tell you what else I overheard from these men. They were talking about Orochimaru and laughing about how 'sorry' they were feeling for the boy they captured. They knew what he was going to do with you. He was going to do extremely invasive and painful experiments on you for as long as he was able to keep you alive. You will know nothing but pain, violation, and despair as long as you are a prisoner of that snake bastard! He will make that five-day-long torture session you put yourself through feel like a pleasant dream! **_Kurama growled out in rage at Orochimaru for even daring to target Naruto. She let her anger die down and her voice became forceful.

_**You know how much I hated seeing you suffer and I will not be able to do anything but watch you go through that for the remainder of your life with that monster. If you can't do this for yourself, then do it for me! Right now, I want nothing more than for you to be the last one standing and I don't care if it had to be so violent and gruesome that all their blood and guts ended up being spread all over the entire mountain range. Their lives were forfeited the moment they understood they were bringing a young boy, who's also my trusted friend, back to be put through hell with that monster!**_

Naruto had to smile gratefully at how badly Kurama wanted him to live through this. He also knew his friends wouldn't care how many enemies he would have to rip apart as long as he returned to them safely. He thought of Hinata and his guts twisted into knots at the image of her crying for him if he had disappeared or died. He didn't want to be responsible for that at all and he would do anything to keep her happy. Most of all, he wanted to return and receive her most affectionate hug, feel how her soft body greedily molded itself to his as if they belonged together lately, and then finally feel her soft-looking lips on his. His eyes widened at this sudden scenario and how right it felt to him at that moment. Now, he couldn't imagine not ever getting that from her eventually, and repeatedly as well. His hand gripped the tree trunk until it started crackling under the pressure and his expression became agape at this sudden revelation.

He remembered all the times Hinata went out of her way to help him. How her happy smiles lit up the whole room and they were almost always aimed at him. He noticed how she absolutely trusted him no matter what because she knew he would never intentionally hurt her. He also remembered how she always blushed red and panted slightly whenever she hugged him lately. It was as if she wanted the exact same thing he had imagined earlier but had to hold herself back because she was patiently waiting for him to realize his feelings. Instead, he was too stupid to see the signs.

"Oh Kami…Kurama, I think Hinata-chan likes me! And I like her! I always did for a long time!" he whispered in shock.

_**Of all the…of course you would pick now to realize this. Right in the middle of a fucking manhunt!**_

_You knew?_

_**EVERYONE IN THE VILLAGE KNEW! Talk later, survive now.**_

_Damn it…I can't let this end here. I'm getting back alive, no matter what happens. Not just for you but I need to tell Hinata-chan how I feel! If they get in our way, so be it. It's them or us. _

_**Good to see you got your usual resolve back. It's not just Hinata who needs you back but the snake girl and your friends too.**_

Naruto frowned at the mention of Anko. Now that he understood his feelings about Hinata, he noticed that he would do just about anything for Anko's safety and happiness too. He also had to admit that he greatly enjoyed whatever affection he received from her as well. This feeling wasn't as certain as it was for Hinata but it was enough to confuse him. Did he also like Anko that way too? Wasn't he only supposed to feel this way about just one girl? He also noticed that he sometimes thought this way about Ino as well, despite having seen her only as a sister-figure for most of their relationship. It was clear things were changing slowly between them however as they both continued to grow into man and woman. He would have to explore those feelings later when he got back. For now, he quickly took his surroundings in to formulate a plan.

_Without my stuff for traps, we need those trees for ambushes so I can't go on too far up the mountains. That steep hill up ahead will be a good location. Even this vomit will be useful too. _

_**How would that work? **_

_It might help lower at least one guy's guard if they find this and think I'm just a scared and injured kid out here alone trying to deal with a kill. _

_**To be honest, you were actually a 'scared and injured kid out here alone trying to deal with a kill' until just a moment ago. **_

_Not anymore thanks to you, Kurama. _Naruto thought with a grin as he hobbled through the snow up the tall and steep hill and over along a line of trees. He continued down the slope until he felt he went far enough then stopped and brought his hands up into a cross-shape.

"Please, let this hold." he muttered before whispering '**Kage no Bushin**'. A clone popped into existence in front of him but he knew his chakra didn't mold properly. It was obvious to Naruto that this clone wasn't going to last long from its sickly and exhausted-looking appearance. Clearly his chakra network hasn't gotten back in order yet.

"Go…do your…thing." the pale-looking clone panted out as he slowly trudged onward through the snow away from its creator. Naruto nodded sadly toward the clone before he hopped up into the trees nearby and made his way back up to the top of the hill using the limbs. He was careful not to disturb the snow and ice hanging on the trees themselves so as not to give anything away to the people chasing him. He found a solid-looking branch hanging over the hill and the track in the snow he recently made. He then secured himself carefully above the crest of the hill he had just traversed. He looked out to the lone clone still trudging through the snow in the distance and hoped it held out long enough.

"Here's hoping this works." He whispered as he made several hand signs. To his great relief, his chakra molded properly this time and his body shimmered to blend in with the surroundings as he successfully activated the **Invisibility Cloak **jutsu.

_I can't believe Ero-sennin originally created this just for peeking. This is a lifesaver! _

_**You'd be surprised at how many notable inventions were created for completely different purposes. **_

Just a few seconds after Naruto had activated the jutsu, a pair of his pursuers came into view out of the forest he had just made his way through before his unscheduled stop. Naruto slowed his breathing and heart rate as he prepared to do what needed to be done. He grinned with satisfaction as he watched the two nin find the puddle of vomit from earlier and he heard them comment that their target was just running scared. They sped up even more as they followed his track up the hill, not as careful of their surroundings as they should have been. Naruto flickered his eyes out into the distance to see his clone still valiantly holding on as it slowed down to a crawl. It was going to pop any second now.

The clone did its job when the two nin reached the crest of the hill and saw it in the distance. They shouted in triumph and began scrambling down the hill. Naruto grinned even more at his plan coming together so nicely. He relaxed his body and prepared to drop. Aiming for the two nin, he silently fell from the branch while canceling the invisibility jutsu in the process.

The two nin didn't notice him yet since they were befuddled by the clone popping into smoke at that moment. As Naruto glided through the air, he aimed his feet straight out at the back of the larger nin on the left. The downward slope of the hill would give him an advantage here. His feet connected solidly with the nin's back and sprang off. The force of the kick plus the slope meant the nin was knocked forward and sent flying down the hill like a speeding missile until he came to an abrupt stop with the ground when it flattened out again. The nin was knocked into a daze for the moment.

Meanwhile, using that nin as a springboard, Naruto bounced off and aimed for the other nin with his arms outstretched. The nin was still slow to react to the sudden ambush on his comrade and dumbly allowed the boy to snatch his head into a headlock as Naruto swung around from behind. The weight of the swinging boy pulled the nin around and downward until Naruto's feet found purchase on the ground downhill of the nin. He pulled the disorientated nin over his shoulder, slamming the man on his back with the head still locked up in the boy's arms. Now in the perfect position right behind the man, Naruto gave the trapped head a violent twist with a snarl. A loud crack echoed through the landscape when the still unaware nin died instantly from a snapped neck.

Naruto took a deep breath as he unsympathetically dropped the dead nin's head to the ground. Killing in such close quarters like this again still bothered him but it was easier to deal with it when he reminded himself that he was going to die or suffer if they captured him again. He ignored the throbbing pain in his still-mending left ankle as he moved around to search the body. He grinned when he found a small satchel full of kunai and removed it from the body. He was about to remove the nin's white cloak to get protection from the cold weather and to blend in with the white landscape around him when something startled him.

"You fucking brat! How dare you attack us from behind!" a loud voice from down the hill echoed around the landscape. Naruto looked down to see the nin he kicked earlier wobbly getting to his feet and glaring menacingly at up him. Naruto knew right away this guy was the one who broke his ankle earlier and Kurama confirmed it for him.

_**It's that coward! Use his anger against him and you'll win easily. **_

"Considering you guys ambushed me and then you broke my ankle while I was out cold and helpless, you have no right to complain, coward!" Naruto shot back hotly as he rose to his feet and snuck a kunai out of his commandeered satchel, keeping it out of the enemy's sight.

"Don't you dare call me that! I'll finally end your life here with no interference from the others!" Akio shouted as he scrambled up the hill toward the blonde. Naruto scoffed as he got into a ready stance for the large nin bearing down on him.

"You're screaming about revenge on a kid for that little boo-boo on your stomach. I think you might just be a little unbalanced." he smirked evilly when that made Akio growl. The enraged man swiped wildly at Naruto with his right arm when he got close enough, thinking a kid like this blonde would go down easily. Naruto proved Akio otherwise when he easily dodged to the side and sliced along the length of his opponent's forearm with the kunai, making Akio yelp in pain and jump back while clutching at the new gash.

"Yep, you just tried to attack an armed person bare-handed…you definitely got a screw loose." the blonde mocked as he playfully tossed the kunai back and forth between his hands as he circled around the large nin. That seemed to have knocked enough sense into Akio though as he took out a kunai of his own. However, it was a custom-made one as it was much longer and thicker than a regular one. The sight of it made Naruto stop dead in his circling.

"Ha! Scared of this, aren't you, little shit? I'm going to enjoy watching this slowly pierce you!" Akio growled out with a sick grin, apparently pleased he was striking fear into a young boy. Naruto spent a silent moment eyeing the odd kunai before he chuckled amusedly, confusing the Oto nin.

"Oh no, that wasn't fear. It's just that I realized something funny. I can see why you're so angry all the time since you're clearly compensating for something with that huge kunai, you small-dicked coward." the blonde taunted with an evil grin. He grinned wider when it took Akio a few seconds to realize what he was implying before the big idiot roared in rage and lunged for the blonde. However, Naruto wasn't just randomly circling around Akio. He had maneuvered himself so Akio would be facing downhill. The Oto nin didn't take the gravity and less solid footing into account when he lunged forward and promptly lost his balance. He wasn't able to stop himself and had to try to balance himself with his arms, leaving his just-stitched-up stomach exposed to any attack as he tried not to fall while running uncontrollably down the slope. Naruto didn't miss this as he sidestepped the runaway nin and struck at the stomach with a hard palm strike. Akio screamed shrilly in pain and lost his concentration, making him fall forward into a violent tumble down the steep slope to the bottom, losing his 'extra-special' kunai in the process as well.

_**That was so satisfying to watch I think I need a cigarette. Who knew you had a sadistic streak in you?**_

_I'll credit or blame you for that depending on who's asking. _Naruto thought with a grin as he walked back to the first nin's body and retrieved the white cloak. Finally suitably warm, he hobbled his way down the hill toward the unmoving and bleeding Akio to check for any sign of life.

At the bottom, Akio was in agony but he was also aware he had a chance to strike at that damn blonde if he just stayed still until the boy got close enough to check on him. He smirked inwardly when he listened to the crunching of the snow growing louder as the boy got nearer. He almost couldn't contain his excitement as he discretely snuck a regular kunai into his right hand when the boy was just about upon him.

Akio wasn't able to take the tension anymore and shot up to swipe out with the kunai, yelling in triumph. The stupid kid was just standing there with a…bored expression? And he was holding out something in front of him. A confused Akio stopped his attempt mid-track when he felt a twinge in his chest and he looked down to see Naruto was holding his 'extra-special' kunai with the sharp end pointed toward him. In his blind enthusiasm, he had just impaled himself in the chest with his own custom-made kunai. A speechless and fading Akio looked back up at the expressionless Naruto in bewilderment.

"How the hell did you get to be a shinobi? I could hear your excited breathing halfway up the hill. I'll bet you're happy you died impaling yourself on your phallic representation of what you never had, though." Naruto spat out just as Akio succumbed to death and slumped listlessly back onto the ground with the modified kunai sticking out of his chest.

_**Whew…I need two cigarettes instead. That's a pretty nasty parting shot. However, I'm not sure that moron understood the 'big words' you just said so you probably sent him to the afterlife very confused instead of angry. **_

_Then it's a win-win for me. _Naruto thought as he quickly made his way away from his latest scene of carnage.

A few kilometers later, a jogging Naruto stopped at a wide open clearing with pristine snow except for where he came in from. He prayed to himself as he brought his hand up into a cross-shape. Much to his relief, four healthy-looking clones popped into existence around him. It was still six less than he wanted but it would have to do. He gave them a silent nod which they returned before they began running off in random directions, leaving multiple tracks in the pristine snow.

_Are you able to sense them, Kurama? _Naruto queried as he watched his clones disappear into the distance.

_**Yes, six of them and they found your latest handiwork just now. They'll catch up with us in minutes. **_

_No time to waste then. They will not underestimate us anymore, so there's no way I can take them on now. _the blonde concluded as he began jogging in a certain direction.

_**I see we're heading in the direction of my den, farther from the capital and possible help. **_

_If they'll catch up with us in only minutes then we can't rely on outside help to come in time. It's a risk, but I'm hoping to trick them and make them think that we would follow a normal boy's thinking and head in the direction of the capital. Instead, we're actually heading in the least likely direction. We'll just have to hide and survive somewhere for a day or two until Ero-sennin finds us. If the enemy run into him, it's all the better for us since he won't break a sweat on them. _

_**That's definitely the best option we have. Here's hoping it'll work. **_

Fifteen minutes later had Naruto standing in a small forest some distance from the clearing he was just in, but still close enough for Kurama to sense what was happening over there.

_How's it going?_

_**They arrived at the clearing and they're just standing around, apparently discussing which direction we may have taken. Wait…they're moving. **_

Naruto waited in tense silence for a moment before Kurama chuckled.

_**Your deception worked. They're all heading toward the capital in a hurry. They're not even bothering to split up and take all the tracks. **_

_Great! I think this is finally turning in our favor. _Naruto thought with a victorious smile as he turned around and began walking in the opposite direction from the enemy. Now all he had to worry about was find some shelter and wait for any positive sign.

_**Naruto! Something's happening with my chakra! It's draining from me too fast! **_Kurama's alarmed voice befuddled Naruto for a second before he fell to his knees doing everything to hold in his loud scream of agony as what felt like the worst kind of hellfire spread quickly throughout his entire body. Instead, a low-pitched whine escaped through his gritted teeth as he crouched into a ball and hugged himself tightly as if to prevent his entire body from falling apart. He did his best to keep his sanity long enough to hear Kurama panicking about the situation.

_**I don't know what's going on! Your body has been reacting strangely for the past day and this may have been the latest episode! Right now, your entire body is trying to suck in every single bit of my chakra all at once! If this keeps up, you'll explode from the pressure! **_

_How! Stop! _Naruto's mind was so besieged by pure agony he's never known before that he wasn't able to even think a complete sentence.

_**You're going have to release all the chakra in your system outward! It should flush it all out! **_Kurama wasn't sure if that would work but it was the only thing she could think up of right now.

_Found! Out! _Naruto was able to retain enough presence of mind to realize doing this would attract his pursuers their way after all the effort of tricking them successfully.

_**I DON'T CARE! DO IT! You're only killing yourself if you keep holding it in! **_Kurama screamed into Naruto's mind. It was all he needed as he threw his head skyward and let out a loud agonized scream. A wave of red chakra exploded outward in all directions. It savagely vaporized the entire forest around Naruto immediately and continued expanding outward for several kilometers, destroying everything in its path. In almost an instant, everything in a five-kilometer radius around a lone blonde became a barren wasteland. However, this seemed to have worked for Naruto, as he relaxed and flopped forward on the ground panting.

_Oh Kami…please don't let that happen to me again. I don't think I can handle any more of that. _

_**Naruto…**_

_Kurama, are you okay?! You were saying it was draining you. _

_**Moron! I should be the one asking you that! I only lost about a tail's worth. I'll get it all back in just a few seconds. **_

Naruto panted as he slowly pushed himself off the ground with trembling arms until he got on his wobbly feet.

_That's good. Why did it hurt if I only took a tail's worth? I use more than that often. _

_**That's because it was regulated between us two. Even when you activate your shroud or transform, my chakra flows into you at a set rate. Just now, your body opened the dam wide open and took it all in at once. Your coils weren't capable of handling that sudden increase in volume mixed in with your own abundant supply of chakra. However, from what I can tell within your body, that episode just expanded them exponentially. In a very violent and painful way, you just became capable of handing a lot more chakra now. **_

_Oh yay, just what I need…more chakra to add to my already above kage-level reserves. Not to mention more goddamned chakra control exercises!_

_**What if this was what you needed for your full transformation…to be able to handle more of my chakra? That's the only logical explanation I can think of for this to happen to you just now. **_

_Maybe this means my body's ready to try the full transformation now. _

_**Perhaps, but we shouldn't test it in an active situation. That reminds me, I have bad news. **_

_They felt the chakra and are coming our way. _Naruto knew since the clones he created earlier dispelled due to his recent episode and he just got their memories. They felt the chakra explosion from that distance.

_**Right. They're around ten kilometers away so you still have a head start. I would recommend taking advantage now. **_

Naruto let out a angry snort at this poor timing and pushed his aching body into running forward as fast as he was able to handle. Before long, he left the barren landscape he created but his still-mending left ankle and his aching body were still slowing him down too much.

_I'm going have to do something drastic. I can't run from them anymore. _

_**What are you going to do? **_

Naruto searched around as he continued running, looking for any particular mountain he could attempt to run up. It needed to meet a certain condition and he found one. He changed directions and ran toward a small mountain nearby that was steeply sloped and covered almost to the peak in snow. Kurama read what was going through Naruto's mind and became horrified at his recklessness.

_**You're a fucking idiot! You're more liable to kill yourself than them! I'd rather you let them capture you and we'll just figure out how to escape another way! **_

_We can't risk that. They sent that bloodthirsty guy after us first. It implied to me they weren't too concerned about me being accidentally killed in the process…most likely a secondary order if I won't let them capture me easily. Also, if they actually take me alive, what if I couldn't escape this time? I don't want you to watch me die slowly under that snake bastard. I have to do this, Kurama. This is our last option. _

There was a painfully long moment of silence between Naruto and Kurama as he reached the base of the mountain and started climbing as fast as his battered body would allow.

_**You know…I consider Hinata, Anko, and whoever else to be lucky. They're not stuck in here 24/7 watching you foolishly jump into then get out of situations that should have killed you easily. I'm the one who has to watch everything happen to you hoping to Kami you'd survive. The worst part is that I can only help you by healing your broken body afterward. If we survive this, you can bet I'm going to give you hell for this afterward. **_Kurama spoke calmly, clearly resigned to whatever was going to happen. Naruto smiled gratefully.

_Thank you, Kurama...for everything. I mean it. _

_**If you were trying to sell me on this suicidal plan, you should at least avoid making that sound so final, Naruto.**_

**Thirty minutes later halfway up the mountain**

The morning sun was starting to peek out over the horizon. It just began snowing heavily and winds picked up into a roar on the steep slope of the mountain Naruto was desperately trying to climb as fast he was able to. However, he wasn't alone.

CLANG!

A clash of metals cut through the roaring winds as an exhausted Naruto narrowly deflected another kunai strike from one of the Oto nin surrounding him. They had caught up to him five minutes ago and began harassing the blonde as he slowly backed himself up the mountain keeping them in front of him. Five nin surrounded him in a half-circle moving wherever he moved, keeping a fixed distance between them and him. One nin remained behind the five to avoid any possibility of Naruto suddenly slipping through the circle with nothing but clear land in front of him. That man was the leader, Joji.

"Good going, men! Tire him out little by little and maybe we'll capture him and actually keep him under tight control this time." he called out to the men. However, he had a lingering doubt in his mind as he watched another one of his men knock Naruto into the deep and loose snow for an instant with another deflected strike. Why did he go up this steep mountain and encumber himself further with this much snow? Was it desperation driving him crazy or another clever tactic like he tried with the misdirection back at that clearing?

Naruto grunted as he deflected another strike that made him stumble again. He had to expend more energy to get back to his feet quickly and continue shuffling backward farther up the mountain. He was tired and frustrated. These men were competent compared to the ones he killed. They were careful not to make mistakes and his earlier attempts at riling them up into attacking angrily didn't work. He wondered if the captain secretly hoped he would have eliminated the apparent weak links of the group when those two incompetent nin were sent after him.

_**I wonder about that myself too. I'm sensing a pattern in their attacks though. The next one after this strike should come from your far left. **_Kurama advised.

_Thanks. I think I'm going to show them why they shouldn't be too comfortable with me. _Naruto thought as he deflected this coming strike from the center with his kunai and allowed himself to fall to the ground. As he struggled to get up, he discreetly clutched the bottom right corner of his cloak with his right hand and held it behind his right leg, out of the leftmost nin's sightline. He had to fight down a smirk when no one noticed the little sleight of hand. He gripped the kunai tightly in his left hand to prepare and, just as Kurama predicted, the leftmost nin rushed at him. Naruto easily deflected the enemy's kunai and, as the nin passed close by, the blonde quickly maneuvered his cloak up into the surprised nin's path and wrapped it tightly around his head to trap him. Naruto then gave his cloak a hard tug, causing the blinded nin to cry out and fall backward defenseless onto the ground in front of him like an offered prize. Before anyone else was able to interfere, Naruto quickly raised his kunai and stabbed it down hard into the nin's chest. With a gurgle, the nin became lifeless in the cold snow of this mountain, cutting the number of enemies to five.

Before Naruto could quickly recover from his maneuver, he heard an angry yell. He finally sent his enemies into rage but his exhaustion and the deep snow slowed him down too much to get into position. An enraged nin rushed in from the stunned group with his tanto drawn and Naruto had to hastily remove the kunai from the dead nin's chest to deflect a full-strength swipe at his neck. It took all his effort, making the blonde lose the bloody kunai in the snow and his balance as well. He was unable to react in time when the angry nin followed through with a downward swipe, his tanto tasting flesh as it slashed down the left side of Naruto's face. Naruto cried out sharply as he clutched at his face and slumped facedown into the deep snow. The snow underneath the yelling blonde's face was already turning dark red with blood. The nin was about to go in for a killing stab aimed at boy's exposed spine when he was stopped by a hand on his shoulder.

"Stand down!" Joji ordered harshly.

"B-but…he killed-" the nin tried to struggle out of the grip to continue.

"I know. I want to kill him too but we have our orders if he can still be captured. It looks like he's finally done for." Joji said as he looked down at the grievously injured blonde. Naruto's continued cries of anger and pain echoed throughout the mountain range. In fact, they were loud enough to make the deep snow on this mountain vibrate slightly around Joji's legs. The taichou felt cold fear grip him as he realized just what Naruto had planned. He lured them up here for only one thing.

"Toshiki, sedate him now! Hurry!" Joji frantic whispering startled one of his comrades into action. He quickly moved over to the target and took out a quick-injection syringe to jab it into the boy's neck. The blonde's pained cries stopped at that point and Joji sighed in relief. He knew that wouldn't have put the boy under for long but he only needed enough time to get everyone off the mountain.

"Ok, grab the boy and we need to get off this mountain quickly but quietly." Joji ordered in a low voice. His comrades slowly caught on to what was going on and their eyes widened at what could have happened. As they were about to relax in relief, they all felt cold dread when they heard a low and mirthless chuckle from the boy. Before Toshiki could move away out of range, Naruto quickly reached out with a bloodied hand and grabbed the nin's collar, trapping him in place. All the Oto nin watched in anxiety as the blonde raised his head to show them a profusely bleeding gash cut diagonally from the center of his forehead across his now damaged and useless left eye before ending on his left cheek. Despite that, his face was contorted into pure rage. His remaining eye was turning scarlet red and silted and the nin all felt a terrible presence press down on them when red chakra started to emerge out of the boy's body.

"**You bastards…I'm sick of this BULLSHIT! You relentlessly chased me for most of the day, beat me up, and now you just cost me a eye! You motherfuckers aren't getting off this mountain alive if I have anything to say about it!" **Naruto growled out menacingly through fanged teeth as he pulled a terrified Toshiki in close and inhaled.

"Stop him!" Joji's useless cry only lasted half a second in the air before it was blown away by a powerful sonic roar that Naruto aimed just inches from Toshiki's head. Needless to say, the nin's brain turned to mush as blood instantly exploded out of his ears and nostrils and he collapsed listlessly into the snow. The roar wasn't as powerful as the one he used earlier in the week but it was enough to get the job done. As the roar's echoes faded from the surrounding mountains, everything became deathly silent for a moment as all the remaining Oto nin stood still awaiting anything. Finally, a loud cracking sound from farther up the mountain made them jump and they looked upward in horror. They watched a visible crack form across the pristine blanket of snow covering the mountain they were standing on. In the next instant, the snow underneath their feet shifted suddenly into motion and most of them fell to their knees as they continued to stare up at the shifting snow in disbelief and denial.

Having expelled some of his rage, a more rationally thinking Naruto took advantage of his enemies' distraction and used his shroud's speed boost to slip past them back down the slope. Unfortunately for him, Joji still had enough presence of mind to expertly throw a kunai toward the blonde. The aim was true as it pierced through Naruto's left thigh, making him yell and fall into a painful tumble down the slope. Joji barked out an order to run and turned around to escape down the slope as well, not even checking to see if his comrades were doing the same. At that point, the shifting picked up speed and the crackling turned into a roar as snow from the top of the mountain started to make it way down, forming a massive avalanche that were quickly bearing down on everyone.

The roaring avalanche reached the four Oto nin almost instantly and they leaped as high as possible into the air to try to alleviate the impact. It passed underneath them before they had to fall helplessly into the rapidly flowing snow. Naruto wasn't as fortunate as he had just rolled to a stop a hundred meter from the ground level and stared up in terror. He wasn't able to move for the moment because of his wounded thigh.

_**Crank up the shroud and brace yourself! **_Kurama warned frantically. Naruto automatically obeyed as he increased the red chakra's density to maximum and braced himself into a defensive ball. The roaring snow hit him like one of Gai's full- strength kicks and he had to just let his body be battered around by the snow, rocks, and broken pieces of wood. It felt like everything in his body was breaking and his shroud didn't stand up to the abuse long before it quickly dissipated, allowing him to feel the full brunt of the avalanche. He felt it was an eternity being violently dragged along in the shifting snow before his back hit something solid.

If it weren't for the snow muffling him, he would have screamed loudly as he felt his spine bend almost to its breaking point under the impact. Before long, he felt the snow finally beginning to slow down around him and it eventually stopped. Groaning in pain from all over his body, he slowly moved his head around since that was the only part of his body he was able to freely move. It shed the snow off his head and he was able to see just above the deep snow pinning him to something. He slowly looked behind with his good eye and saw that it was a dead but thick tree trunk. Checking closely, he also saw the tree was situated at the edge of a high cliff. Had the tree not been in his way, he would have been swept over the cliff to certain death. He chuckled weakly.

"I don't know if that's lucky. My entire body hurts even worse than when I was absorbing the chakra in your den." he mumbled out quietly as he slowly swiveled his gaze across the silent and white landscape in front of him. He was too injured to even get himself out of the snow.

_**FOR THE LOVE OF ALL THAT'S HOLY! I can't believe you lived through this, you manic! I'm seeing fractures on nearly every bone in your body. Only your left arm and right leg are completely intact. You're also suffering massive internal bleeding and some ruptured organs. I'm trying my best to repair the worst damages first but whatever's getting your body out of whack is interfering with my efforts here. It's very slow going at this moment. **_

_Can anything be done about my left eye? _Naruto thought nervously. He felt his hopes dampen when Kurama was silent for too long a moment.

_**That…we'll have to talk about if you get out of here alive. You need serious medical attention and, unfortunately, an eye is low priority on the list of injuries you currently have. **_Kurama said sadly.

_I understand, Kurama. Thanks. _Naruto replied emotionlessly, not sure what to feel right now about the loss of something as vital as his eye. He decided to take Kurama's advice and worry about that when he was back and safe in Konoha. As he mulled over trying to crawl out of the snow using his two intact limbs because he was quickly getting cold, something caught his attention about twenty meters away in front of him. Some snow was shifting and Naruto had a sinking feeling when he watched a hand shoot out suddenly. His stomach sank even further when he saw three more arms shoot out of the snow near the first one.

"Shit." he whispered.

_**What? Did you say something….oh no. **_Kurama whispered in despair as she finally noticed what Naruto was looking at.

_**Just for once, I would love it if our amazingly bad luck would cease for one goddamn minute! Those cockroaches just won't die! **_she growled out angrily as she started pouring even more effort into fixing up Naruto's body but they both knew it was a futile effort. They simply did not have the time. The blonde continued to watch with growing resignation as four battered but still capable shinobi slowly pull themselves out of the snow. He prayed they wouldn't notice his bright yellow blond hair in a sea of white snow, but one of them of course saw him and weakly relayed his discovery to the others. All four slowly looked in his direction as they kneeled to catch their breath.

"Fuck." he said louder. The leader shook his head tiredly as he rose to his feet, followed by the other men. Naruto knew he wasn't going to escape death this time. They all had a depleted look in their eyes. They were tired of trying to capture him and were prepared to simply end his life and put all of this behind them.

_**You should know I'm sensing Jiraiya closing in on this location fast. However, he's still too far away to get here in time. **_

_Thanks. I'll try to figure out how to stall them. _Naruto's defeated tone told Kurama that he absolutely had no trick left and he was just putting on a brave front. They weren't going to get out of this alive.

"Brat…I…I don't even know what to say here. I thought master was joking when he suggested ten men for this mission. Now I know it wasn't even close to being enough. You gave us hell for the past day and, even though you're finally helpless and we could safely transport you now, we're sick of this. I'm just going to end your life right now. Think of this as a favor from me because I'm sure you wouldn't enjoy being alive under Orochimaru-sama's attention. " Joji spoke resignedly as he slowly reached over his right shoulder for the hilt of his tanto strapped to his back. He then slowly move closer to his trapped prey while his remaining comrades silently stood back.

"Gee, I feel special." Naruto grumbled out sarcastically as he stared up defiantly into Joji's eyes. The man grinned sardonically behind his mask as he continued to step closer. It felt to Naruto like time was slowing down when the rising sun behind Joji caught the edge of his just-drawn tanto. As the glare from the blade shone into his eye and made his vision white for a moment, he began to watch images of his life flow through his mind.

He focused on Hinata's brightly smiling visage. She was so beautiful and gentle that he did not want to imagine even making her sad. That would happen if he died here on this lonely cliff. He absolutely needed to return and tell her how he felt about her. Anko's mischievous grin came next and he remembered promising her he would watch her back in future missions. Ino's happy expression appeared and he wanted to make sure she would always have that playful and happy-go-lucky attitude he liked so much from her. He then remembered Temari's fearful expression as she was talking about how her own brother tried to kill her and he had promised her he would take care of that for her. Many different images of his friends rushed through his head in a flash and he made his decision. Instead of awaiting death, he felt determination build up inside him as he closed his eye.

_Kurama…I need all of your chakra. I'm going to open up all of my coils, so just force everything you can into them. I think that'll do it._

A long moment of tense silence followed.

_**Naruto, I'm barely keeping you alive. What you're planning will shift my chakra from healing you. Even if you kill them quickly enough, I can't be sure I would be able to continue to even just hold your body together with the kind of interference I'm getting now. **_Kurama spoke sadly. She knew this was the best option but she had to at least feebly protest.

_I know. You told me once back in that cavern that I need to pick the best path. Letting this guy slice my throat open is certain death. This path is only slightly less certain. I need to take this chance and hope Ero-sennin has a way to keep us alive…and even if I don't survive, the fuckers will go down with me._

_**Ok…it's been an honor knowing you. If you die, I will come back to life with only one purpose; to find Orochimaru and destroy him along with everything he controls. **_Kurama spoke resolutely, her voice thick.

_I'd like it if you would go somewhere safe and enjoy life again but whatever you'd like to do, I'm ok with it. Take care if I don't live, and goodbye. It's been great knowing you. _Naruto thought sadly as he felt Kurama's chakra slowly flood his chakra coils and he concentrated on pushing himself to smash through the 'wall' for one last-ditch effort before he was all spent.

Outside, Joji raised an eyebrow when he watched the buried boy's expression change slightly from resignation to what looked like determination. Ignoring that, he knelled down next to the boy's head and silently moved his tanto against his target's throat. He was going to give it a quick tug, and then it would finally be over. However, at that moment, a powerful presence exploded out of the boy and overwhelmed Joji and his comrades as they felt like certain death was bearing down on them. Naruto's left arm suddenly shot out of the snow, knocking the tanto away in the process as it grabbed onto Joji's surprised face. Naruto opened his right eye and stared up at his would-be executioner with a fierce glare.

"I have to get back to Konoha." he whispered so softly that Joji almost forgot about the hand gripping on to his face and strained to listen closely.

"I have to see everyone again!" Naruto's voice rose as his hand on the man's face started to tremble with effort. It slowly grew black claws that dug slightly into Joji's skin and red fur spread quickly throughout his hand down into his sleeve. He felt huge changes spread throughout him as he started to physically grow and gain more mass and muscles. Joji's trembling eyes widened slowly as he watched this. In the reflection off one of the man's eyes, Naruto vaguely saw his face changing shape and growing red fur all over.

"I have to **return to HER!" **his growling voice grew deeper into a low roar as he watched his trembling hand grow even larger and more muscular than ever before and it now almost completely wrapped around Joji's entire head. One of the Oto jounin's trembling eyes peeking between Naruto's now enormous fingers showed him just how much his transformation was terrifying the grown man. Yet, Joji couldn't react at all as he watched, in paralyzed terror, a young boy change into an entirely new creature in front of his eyes. Soon enough, Naruto felt his body stop changing and felt it was time to quickly get underway as he felt his body breaking down further even in this form.

The other three nin a few meters away stood rooted in their spots as a giant… _something _took the boy's place and it easily broke out of the snow trapping it with a groan. It clambered slowly to its feet with its left hand still clutched tightly around Joji's head, dragging the limp and trembling man along with it. For a long moment, everything was eerily calm, as the creature just stood still and seemed to take in a long peaceful breath with its nose up in the air. However, that all changed when its lone but fierce-looking blue eye snapped to the three terrified nin.

Everything all went to hell when the creature bared its fangs aggressively and hoisted a feebly struggling Joji by his head high into the air. It then growled ferociously as it tossed the screaming jounin like a missile at his three comrades before releasing a mighty roar skyward.

**A few minutes earlier some distance away**

"Holy fuck…what the hell happened here!?" Jiraiya muttered out in alarm as he looked around a large barren piece of land slowly being covered up by the falling snow.

_Naruto had to have done this. _he thought frantically. By luck, he came across the footprints of six people at a large clearing. It was clear from the multiple smaller footprints there that Naruto tried to misdirect them. Deciding the six people were a threat, he followed their tracks in the snow to eliminate them quickly before resuming his search for Naruto. He followed the tracks to this large circular section of the landscape that was apparently turned barren by an explosion of the Kyuubi's chakra. He lost track of the enemy's footprints at this point. Jiraiya anxiously looked around for any sign of new tracks as he walked along the edge of the large barren land that was now slowly being covered up by new snow. He was about to yell out in frustration from wasting so much time searching when he heard a fading roar from a certain mountain in the distance.

"That's his sonic roar." he whispered to himself before he immediately sprinted toward the mountain. He then noticed all the snow on the entire face of that mountain shift and flow downward into a large avalanche.

"NO! Why'd you do that?!" Jiraiya groaned as he pushed his legs to go faster, feeling like the distance between him and the mountain was only shrinking marginally as he watched the avalanche complete its destructive task in horror. He prayed to every deity out there that Naruto was going to be all right as the dying rumble of the avalanche reached his ears from this distance. He kept his eyes focused on the mountain for any tiny speck of blond hair as his legs ate up the distance quickly. His sinking feeling grew into desperation as he reached the base of the mountain and frantically searched all over the disturbed snow. He cursed himself for not being any good at sensing and contemplated wasting a precious few minutes to build up the energy necessary to summon the elder toad Shima for her ability.

However, that wasn't needed when he felt a shift in the air before the Kyuubi's presence washed over Jiraiya like a tidal wave. This felt more potent and more focused than he's ever experienced from Naruto's transformations so far. As he steeled himself against this powerful pressure, he pinpointed it to be coming from a high cliff located some distance away between this mountain and another. He was about to run in that direction when he saw a visible shockwave expand outward quickly from the cliff, vaporizing all the snow in its path. It was strong enough to reach Jiraiya's position instantly and he had to brace himself to let the chakra-enhanced roar pass over him almost harmlessly. Feeling a little frazzled and his ears ringing, he forced himself to keep running toward whatever was happening on that cliff and he was happy there was no snow around to encumber him this time.

Half a minute later, he saw another shockwave expand outward from the cliff again. Thinking quickly since he would actually be injured at this range, he jumped behind a nearby large boulder to shield himself against the wave as it passed over, cracking the boulder itself. Ears ringing again, he took a moment to shake his head of it and that was when a wet slap on the ground in front of him caught his attention.

Jiraiya looked down and was startled to see a bloody piece of a man's head, savagely torn off at its lower mandible, lying at his feet. Taking a deep breath at this grisly sight, he knew whatever this man saw in his last seconds of living was terrifying as he noted the frozen horror in these dead eyes. For a brief moment, he wondered if whatever awaited him up at the cliff would see him as friend? He prayed Naruto would be all right and at least in his right state of mind. Ignoring the discarded remains, the Toad Sage continued onward. He felt the strong presence in the air begin to let up slowly, which gave him hope that whatever was happening was over.

He was making his way up a steep slope leading to the cliff when he made out a large humanoid shape at the top that was just standing there and breathing heavily, but he couldn't make it out clearly due to the low visibility from heavy snow falling between the two of them at this distance. All he knew from observing this hazy silhouette was that it was huge, and it had multiple long tails swishing around behind it. He had to blink his eyes to make sure he wasn't imagining it and this time, when his vision focused, he saw a silhouette of a human boy standing for a moment before it sank down to its knees and collapsed forward onto the ground. Jiraiya knew with no doubt that was his godson.

"NARUTO!" he shouted out as he scrambled upward over the slope's crest closer to the cliff's edge before stopping in shock. He felt like he just walked into a slaughterhouse as he noted torn human body parts and organs peppering the entire cliff area, and blood covered everywhere he looked. He couldn't even make out exactly how many people died here. Was it one or ten? He forgot about that question when something caught his attention.

Lying on his stomach in the middle of this gory scene was a nude blood-covered blond boy with many terrible wounds all over him. Cursing, Jiraiya quickly rushed to his side and carefully turned him over. He couldn't prevent a low growl at seeing the horrific damage done to the left side of this boy's face.

"Naruto…please wake up. I need to know you're alive." Jiraiya pleaded quietly as he frantically searched for a pulse on the boy's neck. It was there but incredibly weak. Naruto's remaining eye cracked open slightly at that moment.

"Ero…late…" he slowly forced out with a small smile. Jiraiya looked sharply up at Naruto's face and sighed in relief.

"I know, gaki. I'm so sorry I didn't get here in time. I'm going to get you treatment quickly." he said frantically as he gently laid the boy on his back to hastily unseal a first-aid kit and remove his cloak for bundling the blonde against the cold weather. Naruto frowned weakly.

"Hebi…" he squeaked out. This stopped Jiraiya cold in his handling and he looked at Naruto's face in shock. After a moment's thought, his slack expression changed slowly to rage.

"That bastard did this…to you?" he growled out, as angry as he had ever been at his traitorous ex-teammate. Naruto nodded weakly and looked like he had to expend all the energy he had left into forming his left hand into a pointing gesture toward a lone tree on the edge of the cliff. Jiraiya's gaze followed the gesture to a masked man sitting slumped over at the base of the tree. He was missing his entire right arm and his left leg looked like it was torn off at the knee.

"Head…Inoichi…" Naruto groaned out softly before he finally succumbed to unconsciousness. Jiraiya knew what Naruto meant by that and resolved to find out why Orochimaru got the idea to try capturing his godson. Meanwhile, Naruto was slowly growing paler.

"Naruto! You need to stay awake! Please!" Jiraiya begged as he gently shook the still boy. Not getting any response, the Toad Sage decided at that moment he had to get his godson back to Konoha as quickly as possible. Standing up, he quickly formed a shadow clone so it would take over quickly bandaging the boy's wounds before wrapping the cloak around Naruto against the weather. Meanwhile, Jiraiya angrily marched over to the tree and the mutilated shinobi. Taking a kunai out, he prepared to cut the head off.

"Monster…" the shinobi's fearful whisper stopped him cold. He was still alive! Jiraiya roared in rage as he reached down to pick the man up by his throat and pin him harshly against the tree. His murderous expression, an inch from Joji's face, instantly froze the feeble cries of discomfort and pain.

"It's you who were the monsters…hunting a twelve-year-old boy across this godforsaken land to take him back for a pathetic man's twisted hobby!" Jiraiya spat out into the man's face.

"Then you've never seen him in that…that form." Joji's frightened voice only enraged Jiraiya further. He squeezed his hand around the man's throat to silence him.

"If my godson didn't need immediate attention, I would have taken my time showing you how much of a monster I can be compared to even whatever you saw today! You think you may fear that snake bastard, but he's absolutely got nothing on me!" Jiraiya growled out hatefully at the terrified masked man as he brandished his kunai. "Now, you can go to hell thanking your luck that your death had to be quick out of necessity this day."

Joji had one final thought as he watched the kunai slashing in slow motion toward his neck.

_Orochimaru, that boy, and now this man….what did I do to deserve dealing with monsters?!_

A minute and a sealed head later had Jiraiya returning to his clone that was now carrying Naruto bundled up in the cloak. A piece of cloth was wrapped around the boy's damaged left eye like a makeshift bandage. Jiraiya looked sadly down at the pale-looking boy and ran his hand through Naruto's hair.

"You're going to be alright, gaki. I'm going to do everything I can to get you better quickly." he assured as he gently took the boy into his arms and the clone dispelled. Taking a deep breath as he turned toward the edge of the cliff, he tightly held Naruto to his chest and then ran at full speed to leap off as high as he could. In mid-air, Jiraiya bit his thumb and then held his hand out straight down, as if he was somehow slamming it onto the air itself. A large and complex array of seals spread out from his outstretched hand. A huge puff of smoke popped into existence underneath Jiraiya. As soon as he felt solid footing, he channeled chakra to his feet to latch on. He and an enormous teal-colored toad with two large katanas strapped to its back appeared out of the smoke falling toward the ground.

"**Jiraiya-dono, I would appreciate it if you remember to summon me on solid ground next time. Preferably in a warmer climate as well." **the giant toad spoke formally in a booming voice as he landed on the ground with an earth-shaking thud far below the cliff.

"I wish this was under better circumstances, Gamahiro-dono. However, this is an emergency and I need your help. I need rapid transport to Konoha in that direction, please. My godson is hurt badly and he needs medical help quickly!" Jiraiya urged as he pointed in a certain direction. Gamahiro nodded as he noticed the feeble-looking boy in his summoner's arms.

"**Understood, Jiraiya-dono. I will do my best to get you there. However, I cannot guarantee I will complete the journey before tiring out." **the toad warned in his usual formal tone as he readied himself and sprang high into the air to begin his rapid hopping out of Land of Iron. Each leap ate up many kilometers and his thunderous landings were felt throughout most of the country. Meanwhile, Jiraiya had to expend more of his chakra holding on to the toad as well keeping Naruto from experiencing too much jolting. He also was applying a little chakra trick he learned from Tsunade long ago. It allowed for an almost stasis-like effect on a grievously injured person's vital organs when it was gently applied to the person's back for as long as the chakra reserves lasted. It was the only thing keeping Naruto from passing away before reaching Konoha. Jiraiya knew he was going to exhaust his chakra reserves completely but Naruto needed the best treatment possible and this was the only way to get back to the village in hours instead of days.

Gamahiro had just made it past the border of Iron an hour and half later before he started to pant and slow down slightly.

"**I am ashamed to say I am beginning to get tired, Jiraiya-dono." **

"Don't worry about it. You did fantastic, Gamahiro-dono! Please pass a message on to Boss that I may have to summon him after Ken-san. Thank you for your hard work." Jiraiya praised as he prepared his chakra for another summoning.

"**Be careful. I know you do not have enough chakra to summon all three of us along with protecting that child. Nevertheless, good luck." **Gamahiro said as he gathered the rest of his energy into his legs for one last leap into the air. As Gamahiro leaped high past the lower layer of clouds, Jiraiya jumped off at the apex. The blue toad disappeared in a puff of smoke and, with a smooth transition, Jiraiya summoned another giant toad in mid-air, this time colored magenta with a shield on its back. He quickly latched on to the toad's head before it dropped to the ground.

"**I'm clumsy but even I know you shouldn't summon me this high in the air, Jiraiya-sama." **Gamaken quipped as he effortlessly landed from that altitude and continued leaping in the direction of Konoha.

"Thank you for coming to our aid, Ken-san. I'm glad to see you got my message." Jiraiya said gratefully, referring to a quick warning he sent via a small toad while he was riding Gamahiro.

"**That boy is said to be the prophesied child and our future summoner. I'm clumsy but I will not allow him to pass away. I will try my best to get you two to your village as fast as possible!" **Gamaken declared as he picked up speed in his leaping. Before long, they were already halfway to Konoha in an hour of traveling. A steadily tiring Jiraiya looked down at the unconscious boy in his arms and was dismayed to note the boy was still growing paler by the hour. He wondered why the Kyuubi wasn't doing anything as he popped a soldier pill into his mouth to replenish some of his chakra and concentrated on keeping Naruto alive.

Another hour and half of leaping brought Jiraiya and Naruto within a hundred kilometers of Konoha, but Gamaken, even with his high endurance, began to falter. At this point, Jiraiya was panting heavily from nearly exhausting his chakra reserves again. Even though this was dangerous, he forced himself to take one more soldier pill ignoring the required forty-eight hours waiting period for the previous pill's effects to run its course. He flinched as hot pain shot through him and he felt some of his chakra being only marginally restored. It gave him barely enough for one more summoning and he would most likely fall unconscious soon afterward but he needed to get Naruto back however he could.

"**I'm sorry I'm too clumsy to get you all the way there!" **Gamaken panted out as he landed from his last leap. Thanking the large toad and steeling himself, Jiraiya took a running leap and jumped off the toad's head as high as he was able. Gamaken popped back to his home and the Toad Sage called up all of his remaining chakra to push into summoning the final toad. A red giant grumpy-looking toad wearing a haori appeared this time. Jiraiya landed on the head, nearly dead on his feet as he clutched on tightly to Naruto in his arms.

"Boss, I need…your…help." he managed to get out before sudden fatigue overtook him. He promptly lost his balance as he faded into unconsciousness from chakra exhaustion. As he slid then fell with Naruto in his arms over the side of the giant toad's head, a long pearl-studded tongue shot out of its mouth and wrapped around both of them gently before drawing them back into the mouth.

"**Yer a dumbass. Pushin' yerself this much to save the little tadpole… what're yeh gunna do if you fell o'er dead here without me 'round? Ma's gunna kill yeh twice o'er after this." **Gamabunta mumbled grouchily around the two humans in his mouth. He carefully secured the two unconscious humans with his tongue before he started leaping quickly the rest of the way to Konoha.

**Soon in Konoha in a dango shop during lunch hour**

"Yo!" a purple-haired young woman called out as she approached a booth currently occupied by Hinata and Ino. Anko waved but grumbled a little, as she had to wedge her way through the packed shop.

"Ano…good afternoon, Anko-chan." Hinata greeted happily. Ino nervously waved silently with an unsure smile when Anko looked her over with a neutral expression.

_Oh Kami…she's so beautiful and sexy! How am I going to match that even when I grow up? _Ino thought in awe as she took in Anko's incredibly curvy body and her casual outfit of a tight black t-shirt, with the printed kanji for 'Fuck off' stretched across her large breasts, and a pair of tight blue jeans. Ino's wandering light blue eyes locked with Anko's light brown eyes and she had to blush when the older woman smirked knowingly as if she read what Ino was thinking. Even though her puberty have picked up speed lately, as evidenced by her widening hips and her bust nearing B-cups, Ino still felt woefully inadequate compared to Hinata's rapidly maturing looks. In addition, Anko just came into the picture and easily blew Hinata's looks out of the water, at least for now until Hinata reached adulthood. It might turn into a close competition between the two at that point.

"Mind scooting over?" Anko's request cut into Ino's introspection and she automatically scooted down the booth to make room for the new arrival to sit down next to her.

"Ino-chan, this is Mitarashi Anko. Anko-chan, this is Yamanaka Ino, a friend of mine and Naruto-kun's." Hinata formally introduced each other with a smile. She had a feeling Anko might get along well with Ino. The introduced women greeted each other politely with a bit of awkwardness between the two, mostly on Ino's part.

"Ano…I believe it's time for me to check if they completed my order." Hinata suddenly announced with a smile as she stood, pointedly ignoring Ino's betrayed expression at being left alone with the somewhat intimidating woman. As she nudged her way through the busy crowd, Hinata was hoping a brief time alone together might break the ice between her friends.

After watching Hinata disappear into the crowd, Anko robotically swiveled her head toward the sweating Ino with a predatory grin. Ino did her best not to shrink back when Anko reached her arm around the blond girl's shoulders and pulled her in for a private chat between the two.

"Don't worry, I don't bite." Anko assured with a friendly smile which made Ino relax a little. However, Anko wasn't done.

"Well, not all the time." she added in stage whisper. Ino couldn't help but giggle at that.

"Good, you're lightening up. Also, don't worry about your looks. I know several Yamanaka girls my age or older and they always have great looks. However, they'll have nothing on you in a few years and you'll have men eating out of your hands soon enough." Anko assured sincerely. Ino was surprised by Anko's up-front honesty and desire to make her feel at ease. Ino knew about Anko's reputation but if Naruto and Hinata befriended this woman, then she couldn't have been all that bad.

"However, I'm going to let you know this now to save you the trouble later. You'll have to settle for second best because I'm going to be the sexiest woman in this village for decades to come." Anko added with a smug grin. Ino sweat-dropped but laughed anyway.

"I'm not sure if it's me you should worry about." she blurted out without thinking as her eyes flicked toward Hinata at the counter. She blushed a little under Anko's blank stare for a moment before the older woman grinned impishly.

"Friends with the gaki, pretty, and a little bit of sass…I think we'll get along swimmingly. Just refer to me with the 'chan' suffix and I'll do the same in return." she decided as she gave Ino's shoulder a pat.

"Thank you, Anko-…chan. How did you know that's what I was thinking?" Ino quizzed shyly as Anko drew her arm back and leaned back into the booth's seat comfortably.

"I do some work as an interrogator in the T&I department. Part of my job is to read slight changes in a prisoner's mannerisms and expressions and figure out the person's most likely thoughts and emotions." Anko answered easily before she turned toward Ino with an amused smirk.

"I wouldn't be so quick to put me entirely in the 'goody-two-shoes' category if I were you, Ino-chan. My reputation, at least only the part about me being a beautiful and insane bitch, is well-deserved." she added and had to laugh at the younger girl's stunned expression.

"Ano…I see Anko-chan is beginning to like you, Ino-chan." Hinata's voice cut in as she returned to the table with a plate holding two cinnamon rolls. Ino turned to her with a confused frown.

"She usually shows off that skill with people she likes." Hinata clarified for Ino's benefit as she took a blissful bite out of her favorite treat. Anko raised a challenging eyebrow.

"Someone else apparently can see the small details. Prove it to me." she retorted with a grin.

"Ano...you do it all the time with Naruto-kun to drive him crazy. He's had to become better at controlling his expressions over the past year to avoid your constant teasing. You also started doing it with me two weeks ago after we 'buried the hatchet'. Finally, just last week, you did it with Hanabi-chan almost right after you met her." Hinata counted out before taking another bite, much to Anko's slight annoyance and Ino's poorly concealed snickering.

"Alright, I suppose you caught me. However, it was so fun watching that adorable little girl trying hard to do that stoic Hyuuga thing in public that I just had to go and mess that up." Anko laughed as she remembered Hanabi's frustrated and twitching expression at being read so easily before she finally gave in and displayed her true nature a little.

"On that note, you seem to be thinking about a certain blonde a lot lately, Hinata-chan. A nice dream, perhaps?" Anko teased in a little bit of revenge. Hinata blushed for a moment at being read like that before her expression became a little forlorn.

"Bad dream?" Anko guessed with a frown.

"I-I think so. It's nothing, though. We shouldn't discuss that here when we should be chatting about normal things." Hinata tried to redirect the conversation. However, she didn't like Anko's deepening frown and Ino's slightly downcast expression.

"You two as well?" Hinata murmured in surprise.

"Well, I've had some nightmares about gaki for a while after he left but not lately." Anko said with an inquisitive expression as she mulled over this odd coincidence that Ino and Hinata dreamt something unpleasant about Naruto.

"I didn't think my dream was bad until the end when I realized something." Ino mumbled nervously. The other girls turned toward her.

"What's that?" they quizzed at the same time.

"Naruto was nowhere to be found. In the dream, I was just enjoying life like normal with friends here in this village. However, I felt something small was missing; as if I didn't feel totally complete. That was when I noticed Naruto wasn't around. I asked but no one had any memory of him. Not even you, Hinata-chan. All of you just went on with your lives; never knowing Naruto had ever existed. I hated that dream so much and I never wanted to wake up as much as I did that morning." Ino admitted quietly. The others frowned as this revelation just added to their bad premonitions as of late.

"Ano…I dreamt that it was snowing heavily and Naruto-kun was walking away from me silently, no matter how many times I called his name. He just continued to walk into the distance and disappeared in the snowstorm and I just had this horrible feeling that was the last I saw of him." Hinata shuddered slightly as she added her piece. She then turned to Anko.

"May we hear what happened in your dream?"

"It's not pretty. Do you know Orochimaru?" Anko waited for the others' confirming nods before continuing. "To make it short, I dreamt that bastard went after gaki. Gaki tried to fight back but it was no good and I watched helplessly as he was being overwhelmed. It wasn't pretty and I lost a lot of sleep with that nightmare. I just managed to stop thinking about it lately." she finished and the booth fell into dead silence for a moment.

"I don't like this. This is just a coincidence, right? We're just missing Naruto and that's why we dreamed these stuff up." Ino's worried whisper echoed the other girls' discontent as well.

"You're right, Ino-chan. I'll bet gaki is busy dragging that perverted old man's broken body out of another women's onsen at this moment." Anko joked with a somewhat forced grin as she tried to push this topic aside. However, the other girls' subdued expression irritated her enough that she slapped a hand on the table, surprising the others into attention.

"Oh c'mon! It's only been three weeks and we still have more than two months to go. We can't just let this rule us. Gaki's perfectly fine and as soon as he's back at the main gate, he's gonna laugh in our faces for worrying ourselves sick over nothing." Anko's speech seemed to have put some fire underneath the other two girls as they adopted assured expressions of their own. Smiling with satisfaction, Anko stood up slowly from the booth.

"I'm going to order-"

WHAM!

A deafening sound hit the entire dango shop that rattled the store's windows enough to almost shatter them with hairline cracks appearing in some of them. Most of the patrons, who apparently were shinobi, quickly got to their feet with their weapons drawn. The few civilians yelped in surprise and instinctively covered their heads. The powerful tremor that followed half a second later shattered the cracked windows into million pieces that got on some of the surprised patrons. It also knocked over some glassware and other things. Anko had to brace herself against the table while the younger girls yelped as they covered their heads to protect themselves from the falling pieces of glass. After the tremor passed, the initial cries of surprise in the shop developed into an uproar as everyone tried to make sense of what was going on.

"We need to see what caused that." Anko whispered as she discreetly swiped a kunai out of a nearby shinobi patron's holster just in case. Her slightly dazed tablemates brushed off the pieces of glass that got on them and began looking around to make sense of what was going on.

"That's a huge frog!" a little boy hopping in place by his speechless mother yelled loudly from where they were standing on the street next to the dango shop. He was pointing at something. Anko quickly hopped outside through the broken window to see what was going on with Ino and Hinata following immediately. As Anko and the others moved over to the excitedly pointing boy, their gazes followed his gesture to find an incredible sight. A giant red toad in a haori was sitting by the village's hospital a few blocks away and it was panting lightly.

"Have you ever seen a frog that big, onee-san?!" the boy exclaimed excitedly to the girls standing in quiet shock next to him. Anko was staring up at the large toad in clear distress.

"No…that's a toad." she corrected almost automatically in a low voice. It sounded like she didn't want to believe what she said though. Hinata and Ino were amazed at seeing the large toad, but they noticed Anko seemed to have realized something else entirely different.

"What is it, Anko-chan? You're acting odd and that's not just because we're seeing a giant toad in front of us." Hinata curiously asked before she and Ino flinched when Anko snapped her head toward them sharply with a fierce expression.

"You don't understand! That's Gamabunta, the boss summon of the Toads and Jiraiya is their only summoner!" Anko hissed frantically.

"You're saying that if Jiraiya-sama summoned that toad and it's here, that means something's happened to him? Or…Naruto?" Ino laid out the situation. She began hoping to Kami that wasn't it but that had to be the only reason that toad leapt into the middle of the village hard enough to shatter windows for several blocks around it. This had to be an urgent situation, and its location by the hospital did not inspire confidence at all either.

"No…!" Hinata whimpered, refusing to think that something happened to Naruto. Anko took a steadying breath.

"Well, we're not going to find out just standing around. I'm going on ahead to see what's going on. I wouldn't blame you if you two don't want to come along." Anko spoke bravely but the others could hear a small undercurrent of anxiety in her voice. Ino and Hinata nodded weakly but they were determined to see what was going on. They followed Anko as the three girls quickly made their way toward the hospital.

**At the hospital**

The hospital easily absorbed the giant toad's landing since it was built to stand up to even the strongest jutsu in case of an invasion. However, it didn't stop some of the staff from crashing to the floor from the impact. When they recovered, almost all of them ran out of the hospital to see what was going on. They gaped as their gazes found the belly of an enormous creature and followed it up to the permanently scowling face of Gamabunta.

"**Oi, go' an emergency 'ere!" **the giant toad panted out lightly. One of the doctors was so struck dumb by the sight that he didn't think of what came out his mouth.

"I think you might need the veterinary instead?"

"**No' me, moron! 'em!" **Gamabunta rumbled out loudly as he opened his mouth revealing two unconscious humans wrapped in his tongue. The toad moved his head down to gently release Jiraiya and Naruto and they sprawled out onto the ground in front of the assembled staff. Their training snapped them into action as they instantly surrounded the two unconscious humans. They gasped as they noticed just how badly wounded the smaller of the two was.

"Oh Kami…what happened to them!? This boy looks like he's been through hell and back! How is he still alive?" the senior doctor muttered in shock before he snapped into action.

"Find gurneys for them and prepare an operating room for the boy! Top priority! He is to receive treatment immediately!" he ordered several nurses who quickly obeyed and rushed into the hospital to carry out the orders.

"This man has to be Jiraiya-sama of the Sannin and he's suffering from a clear case of extreme chakra exhaustion and solder pills overdose. No visible wounds however." reported one of the staff surrounding the large unconscious man twitching in pain from the overdose. The senior doctor nodded and ordered treatment set up for Jiraiya. He knew Jiraiya would recover soon but the outlook for the boy was grim as he watched his staff frantically work to keep the blond boy alive even a second longer.

"What's going on here?" a commanding voice broke the doctor out of his thoughts and he turned to see Sarutobi Hiruzen, the Third Hokage, land on the ground along with several ANBU behind him. He also noted one of the ANBU with long purple hair flinch and gasp audibly in horror at the sight of the blond boy. The Hokage wasn't doing much better with his stern face paling by the second.

"N-naruto-kun?" he murmured weakly as his eyes fully took in the mangled form of one Uzumaki Naruto lying on the ground nearby. The senior doctor sighed dejectedly.

"So it's really him. I was hoping otherwise, Hokage-sama. We're quickly doing everything to save him. Jiraiya-sama is unconscious from chakra exhaustion and we're preparing his treatment as well." he reported as he watched the nurses quickly roll the gurneys out toward the two patients. The Third nodded shakily as he finished taking in the sight of his favorite student and surrogate grandson before looking up at the giant toad.

"Lord Gamabunta, can you please tell us what happened?"

"**I didn't get any information from Jiraiya since that dumbass knocked himself out summoning me, even though he had so little chakra left after bringing out Hiro and Ken in succession today." **the toad grumbled, now speaking properly without the humans in his mouth.

"What? Why would he expend so much chakra summoning all three of you to this realm?" Hiruzen quizzed. Gamabunta frowned before continuing.

"**From what Hiro told me before Jiraiya summoned me, he was summoned to the mountains of Land of Iron this morning and Jiraiya told him that little tadpole was ambushed and pushed himself to near death in order to escape. Jiraiya apparently decided he couldn't risk trying to find treatment for the tadpole elsewhere but here, so he ran himself ragged covering the distance between that country and here with the three of us."**

Hiruzen had to take a moment to feel some pride for Jiraiya for being willing to push himself so far for someone else, especially Naruto. He then nodded sadly.

"We're grateful to you for bringing them here as quickly as possible, Lord Gamabunta. We'll give them the best care possible." the Third bowed deeply and most of the people standing around the toad did as well.

"**My only request is you do whatever you can to save the tadpole. Jiraiya did tell us he will be our future summoner and I would hate not being able to test him on that and then drink sake with him afterward." **Gamabunta rumbled out before he popped into a large explosion of smoke to return to his home. Hiruzen returned his attention to the chaotic scene before him as the hospital staff quickly secured Jiraiya and Naruto into their gurneys and rushed them into the hospital building.

"H-hokage-sama, may I oversee Nar-…U-uzumaki-san's treatment to make sure nothing unexpected happens?" Yugao's professional but shaky voice cut into Hokage's thoughts and he turned toward the slightly fidgeting female ANBU.

"Are you sure? I know you have some attachment to Naruto-kun and it will be cruel to you to watch them work on him and be unable to do anything, Neko-san. Believe me, I know from experience." the Hokage said sadly.

"Nevertheless, I need to see for myself that he will pull through." Yugao replied firmly as she bowed.

"You have my permission." the Hokage wondered if it was crueler to let her go or force her to stay. Yugao nodded gratefully and briskly strode into the hospital. He wished he could go in himself but he had to steel himself to continue his role as the leader of this village. He quickly gave orders to the assembled shinobi and ANBU to help assure the village's populace that everything was fine and that they should return to their business after cleaning up the mess left by Gamabunta's arrival. He then heard a voice he hoped not to hear at this moment.

"Did something happen to gaki, old man?" Anko's anxious voice reached him and he cursed his luck. The Hokage tried his best to keep his expression neutral as he turned toward three panting but concerned young women. However, it was apparent his effort was in vain as Hinata, Anko, and Ino changed their expressions to fear. Ino brought a hand up to her mouth and Hinata's lips began to tremble.

"W-w-what happened?! Please say Naruto-kun is okay!" Hinata pleaded. The Hokage couldn't lie even if it was to calm down the women so he showed a sad smile.

"He's fighting for his life right now but he'll pull through."

"No!" Hinata whispered with tears already streaming down her cheeks and shaking her head frantically in denial. She tried to take a step toward the hospital's entrance, but her legs just failed her when her knees buckled. She stumbled into Ino's arms and they slowly collapsed to their knees hugging each other as the shell-shocked blonde absentmindedly tried to soothe the silently sobbing Hinata.

"I…I need to go! I have to see him!" Anko shouted frantically as she began to make her way into the hospital. The Hokage stepped into her way and ignored the murderous glare from the emotional woman.

"I cannot let you go in. He's been mangled almost beyond recognition and barely hanging on. They're working with everything they have to save him. I already allowed Neko-san in to oversee the operation and make sure he pulls through. You just recovered from an emotional trauma and I will not, in my good conscience, allow you to experience another one so soon, especially if there's a risk of things taking a turn for the worst. You and your young friends will have to wait for the news." Hiruzen's firm glare was enough to make the trembling Anko suck in her breath harshly and back down with an angry grunt. Unfortunately, Ino and Hinata overheard what the Hokage said about Naruto's condition and it sent Hinata into near-hysteric as she screamed and sobbed louder into Ino's chest. The poor blond girl began to let her tears stream down her cheeks as she choked back her own sobs in an attempt to remain somewhat strong for her friend.

"What…what are we supposed to do?" Anko pleaded weakly as she did her best to blink away the few tears that threatened to escape her eyes. The Hokage sighed wearily.

"Just believe he will live. He has to." he whispered the last part as he sadly watched the two poor girls crying for their friend.

**In the operating room**

Yugao almost regretted her decision to observe the operation being performed on Naruto. She stood guard silently by the door as she watched six doctors and nurses work together in amazing harmony on the dying blonde. Seeing her friend's mangled body up-close was almost enough to have her resolve break down and escape outside. Hearing the staff frantically list his extensive injuries with no end seemingly in sight didn't help either.

"Fractured left femur, fibula, tibia and ankle. A kunai stab wound through his left thigh. Fractured pelvis. His right humerus suffered a compound fracture. Both his right radius and ulna are fractured. There are damages to his blood vessels and chakra coils all over the body as well." One staff member reported.

"Ten of twelve ribs are fractured, some in multiple places. He has a ruptured spleen, puncture in the left lung, and a tear in his stomach with massive internal hemorrhaging all over the place. He experienced extensive internal bruising along his spine and some damage to five of his thoracic vertebrae. A serious concussion along with some hairline fractures on the rear of his cranium. Extensive damage to the left side of his face with his left eyeball destroyed. We still haven't covered everything! How the hell is he still alive?!" another muttered in disbelief. It was enough to almost make Yugao release a sob as she held back her torrent of emotions watching this horrible sight. Naruto was so pale that if it weren't for the people frantically working on him, she would have been sure he was already long dead. She bitterly cursed her leader for allowing her to watch this, but she knew she would have cursed him just as much if he had held her back.

"I'm not sure where to even begin to fix the damage. There are too many vital areas to cover at once!" a doctor called out as he began preparing a tray of surgical tools, since just medical jutsu for this wasn't going to be enough. Yugao was so focused on the operation going on that she jumped in fright when the senior doctor banged into the room through the door next to her, all scrubbed up and ready.

"We'll begin with stopping his internal bleeding first!" he barked out and he pointed at an attending nurse.

"Get me six pints of blood type B-plus and prepare for transfusion! He's lost too much!" he ordered urgently, and the nurse quickly ran out of the room.

"We're losing him! His pulse's gone!" another nurse shouted. Cold fear gripped Yugao and she wanted to scream around the huge lump in her throat. Her trembling fists clenched tight enough to draw blood.

"Damn it! I'll get his heart going!" the senior doctor announced as he pushed aside his staff before activating his **Mystical Palms **jutsu and held the glowing hands right above Naruto's heart. He pressed down firmly and the glow flashed in intensity for a moment, making Naruto's body twitch violently. It took Yugao all she had to not flinch in despair at that.

"No change!" the nurse reported.

"I'm turning it up!" Another violent twitch and Yugao did flinch this time. She finally couldn't contain a small and silent sob as tears started to form at the corners of her eyes.

"Still no change!"

"Again!" This time, Naruto did not even move.

"No change!"

Yugao was weeping silently behind her mask as she watched her friend, who was also responsible for her surrogate sister's newfound happiness as of late, fade away slowly on the operating table.

_Please…somehow…come back to us, Naruto-kun! Anko-chan still needs you! It's not going to be the same without you around! She'll miss you! I will miss you too!_

**Inside Naruto's mindscape**

"**WAKE THE FUCK UP! YOU WILL NOT DIE ON THE TABLE JUST WHEN YOU FINALLY GOT SOME HELP!" **Kurama roared out through the crumbling mindscape in an attempt to reach Naruto's consciousness however she could. She had just felt multiple foreign chakra enter her tenant's body in an attempt to heal it so she knew right away that Naruto had made it to at least some medical help. She spent the last few hours desperately forcing what little of her chakra she could into Naruto's still uncooperative system in her slowly failing effort to freeze the body's deterioration into total failure. She should have been able to easily heal most of Naruto's damages hours ago but, because of her old chakra messing up the system, she was prevented from doing so.

Kurama growled in frustration as she watched the beautiful landscape that she created together with Naruto over the years crumble around her and she was starting to experience some twinges of pain. An alarming sign that she was about to 'die' herself due to Naruto's seal linking them together. A loud cracking sound was heard and Kurama looked down at her right hand in surprise. There was a large crack in the ring on one of her fingers. She had completely forgotten the seal had been modified into a ring that she put on. Looking closer, she could feel the seal start to fail due to Naruto's life force fading out. She knew right away that she had a chance now if she pushed her way out just before Naruto passed away. She would be able to escape safely out into the world. If it had been five years ago just after she met Naruto, she would have been tempted for a long second. However, that wasn't what she wanted now at all. She wanted nothing more than for her friend to survive, so the decision was easy for her; she would go down with him. However, it would not be before she gave it everything she had.

"**Naruto! Listen to me…you're going to live if I have anything to say about it! Live for Hinata! For Anko! For all of your friends! For me! TELL THE SHINIGAMI TO GO FUCK HIMSELF AND GET YOUR ASS BACK HERE INTO THIS GODDAMN BODY!" **she roared again as she pushed every last bit of her chakra into Naruto with all of her effort. There was a tremor in the mindscape then a large shift of pressure in the air and, all of a sudden, Kurama felt a huge rush as her chakra flowed into Naruto's system at an alarming rate.

"**YES! YOU DID IT, YOU BASTARD!" **the great fox yelled in triumph.

**Back outside**

The operating room was deathly silent for a long moment just after the senior doctor tried to jumpstart Naruto's heart for the fifth and final time. There was no response. All the staff assembled around the pale and still body of Naruto slowly bowed their heads in silent dejection. A shaking and silently weeping Yugao was begging with all her being for the senior doctor to not announce the time and date.

He looked like he was about to when a familiar and powerful presence instantly filled the room, shocking everyone into taking a step back from Naruto. They stared at the blonde for any sign of movement and they jumped in fright when he inhaled loudly and his body arced upward as far as it would go.

"Get back!" the senior doctor warned sharply as all the staff quickly retreated from Naruto's arcing body that was now emitting glowing red chakra all over it. Yugao and the others watched in astonishment as the chakra began to heal almost all of the visible wounds on the body with a loud hiss. It was slowly restoring the body to what it was like before all of this happened, leaving behind only scars. The senior doctor ignored the possible danger of the red chakra and inched close enough to check Naruto's condition with his medical scanning jutsu. Whatever he saw inside Naruto's body made his eyebrows go up.

"T-this is incredible! Most of the internal wounds are healing rapidly and the bones are setting themselves and mending already! I've never seen anything like this!" he muttered in amazement. Yugao couldn't help but expel her breath loudly in relief as she watched color return to Naruto's body and he slowly exhaled as if it was the breath of life that went into him earlier. As quickly as the red chakra appeared, it disappeared and Naruto released the tension in his arcing body and sank back down to the table with a dull thunk. The staff quickly crowded around him.

"Whatever miracle just happened, he's still not out of the wood yet! He still needs that blood transfusion and his left eye is still gone! Check every inch of him and make sure he will pull through." the senior doctor ordered to his now more motivated staff. Yugao took a shuddering breath as she felt almost all of her strength leave her. She had to step out of the room on trembling legs before she risked collapsing and distract the medics from Naruto's treatment. Just outside in the hall, she put her back to the wall and slid down slowly until she could tightly hug her legs to her chest. She buried her masked face into her legs and sobbed quietly in relief for her friend.

It was thirty minutes later when Yugao stepped silently into the lobby. She immediately saw Anko sitting against the far wall on a bench in deep thoughts next to Hinata and Ino. The younger girls were comforting each other and trying not to think about Naruto possibly dying. Next to them were the boys that Naruto mentioned. The ANBU recognized all of them from their clan traits. They were Shikamaru, Shino, Kiba, and Choji and they were silently sitting still with grim faces. Leaning against a wall was Umino Iruka and her former ANBU captain, Hatake Kakashi. For once he wasn't reading anything as he stared down at the floor. Iruka was showing a focused expression as he tapped a finger on his crossed arms. She also noted a middle-aged man with his arm around a silently crying young brunette-haired woman. That had to be Teuchi and Ayame from the ramen stand. Finally, she locked eyes with the Hokage, who was already aware of her arrival and he was patiently awaiting her report. She smiled as she shifted to attention.

"Hokage-sama!" her loud voice shook everyone in the lobby out of their daze. "I'm happy to report Uzumaki Naruto has made it. It was a close call, but he's going to live. He should wake up in a few days at least."

The Hokage smiled with visible relief and the lobby went into an uproar as most of the assembled people got to their feet and began clamoring for answers around Yugao. Hinata was still seated and sobbing in relief with Ino's arm around her and the blonde was whispering comforting words to her friend. She was clearly crying happily as well. The boys were exchanging cheers and high-fives. Iruka smiled in relief and Kakashi nodded his head slowly before walking out of the lobby. He was going to the memorial to thank everyone up there for helping Naruto pull through. Teuchi and Ayame were happily declaring free ramen for everyone in the lobby to celebrate Naruto's recovery.

A silent Anko stepped up to Yugao after the others moved away to chat among themselves, and she was staring at her cat-masked older sister with an odd expression. A silent nod from the ANBU prompted them to discreetly move to a secluded spot in an empty office space off the lobby. As soon as they were alone, Anko readily stepped into Yugao's waiting embrace and squeezed.

"I thought we lost him." was all Anko whispered into her older sister's chest. Yugao heard some sniffling as she removed her mask and hugged her surrogate sister back with a sniffle of her own. Even though she already let out some emotion earlier, she needed this just as much Anko did.

**Soon outside**

"Someone made this happen to Naruto-kun and Jiraiya-kun." the Third decided with a frown as he and Yugao stepped out of the hospital fifteen minutes later. Anko knew Yugao was still working so she had gone on to home to await further word.

"I agree, Hokage-sama. Uzumaki-san's body was beaten up so badly it was as if a force of nature battered it around but the wounds on his head and left thigh were clearly caused by weapons. How's Jiraiya-sama?" Yugao inquired as they made their way back to the Hokage's office.

"He'll be fine. He's going to be out for several days as well, however." the Hokage replied and he formed an impatient expression.

"That also means we cannot hear exactly what happened to either of them in the meantime. I don't like waiting on this since it could be time-sensitive. Just what did they encounter in Land of Iron?" he wondered with a curious expression.

"Perhaps something on Jiraiya-sama's person might lead to a clue?"

"Good idea, Neko-san. Boar!" the Hokage called out sharply. The boar-masked ANBU appeared at his side.

"Please search though Jiraiya-kun's clothes and personal effects for any possible clue to their predicament and get back to me quickly." Hiruzen ordered and Boar quickly nodded before vanishing.

**Back inside the hospital**

"I don't know if I'm ready to see him right now, Hinata-chan." Ino mumbled nervously as she and Hinata stood holding hands outside the hospital room Naruto was assigned to. They were the first to be allowed in to see Naruto since the staff didn't want everyone coming in all at once for now. Ino was trying hard not to cry again at the very thought of Naruto being hurt.

"Ano…what's important is Naruto-kun's alive and recovering. I'm happy with that, no matter what condition he's in." Hinata-chan said firmly, her tear stains still visible on her cheeks. She's had enough of crying and she knew she needed to be resolute in turn for Ino. Her friend had done an admirable job keeping her from completely breaking down up until now, but Hinata knew Ino was nearing the breaking point herself.

"He's always so carefree and strong. I just can't stand the idea of him being wrapped up in bandages in a hospital bed and not moving at all. They said he lost one of his eyes! How can you be so strong?" Ino replied with a fearful tone as she clutched Hinata's hand tightly in hers.

"Ano…I'm not. I don't think I ever will be able to stand seeing Naruto-kun get hurt any time now or decades later."

"Then why?"

"I love him and he's going to need people by his side. That's all the reason I need to be this room with him. I will wait here as long as it takes until he wakes up, Ino-chan." Hinata turned to Ino with a determined expression and the blonde took comfort from that look.

"Okay." she mumbled feebly as she watched Hinata open the door and they slowly stepped in. The first thing they noticed was Jiraiya in his bed by the large window on the far side of the room. Hinata briefly observed Jiraiya's peacefully sleeping face before she heard a horrified gasp from Ino. Her friend then instantly clutched onto her.

"Naruto!" Ino whimpered into her left shoulder as Hinata steeled herself to shift her gaze to her right toward the other bed in the room. What she saw made her wish she didn't have to be strong for Ino as she silently observed Naruto, with his head heavily wrapped up in bandages, laying deathly still in the bed. He was breathing normally and he didn't look to be in any kind of danger now, but Hinata briefly wondered if this was really her Naruto. She had watched him sleep many times before and he always looked strong and assertive even with his eyes closed. This Naruto was defenseless and frail. The heavy bandage wrapped around his left eye made her heart clench.

"Naruto-kun…" Hinata called out quietly as she forced herself to take a step forward. She kept her body moving until she reached Naruto's left at his bedside with a silently crying Ino still hanging on tightly to her shoulder. Hinata slowly reached out with her right hand for Naruto's face and as her fingers gently touched his scarred cheek just under his bandaged left eye, she smiled sadly in relief.

"He's really going to be okay. He's really here." she whispered to Ino as she moved her fingers up onto his forehead to rake through what little of his beautiful blonde hair was left unwrapped by the bandages. Ino's tear-streaked face rose from her friend's shoulder to watch this and she seemed to be regaining her composure at the sight.

"Ino-chan, you should do this, too. It'll prove to you once and for all he's going to be okay." Hinata whispered soothingly as she stepped back and, with a hand on the small of Ino's back, gently pushed her slightly resistant friend into position by Naruto's bedside. Ino took a steadying breath and raised a trembling hand up to Naruto's face. She touched his left cheek gently, just as Hinata did. She expelled a relieved sigh as she continued to gently trail them down the cheek to his strong jawline.

"It feels so warm and good to touch him like this." she whispered in awe. Hinata smiled as she contentedly watched Ino caress Naruto's face for a few minutes.

"Hinata-chan, there's something I need to tell you." Ino suddenly spoke as she ghosted the back of her fingers along Naruto's jawline. Hinata remained silent, having an idea as to what was on Ino's mind.

"When I had that dream, I woke up from it feeling so empty I found myself looking for an old photo of me and Naruto from when we were younger, just so I could see if he was actually around in this reality. Seeing his happy smile put me so much at ease it was unbelievable and I just knew. I knew at that very moment I'm feeling something serious for him. I love the way he always helped people that needed it. I look forward to the days he would randomly come into the flower shop for no reason other than to make my boring job fun. I love how he's so smart and strong yet doesn't let any of that get to his head. Most of all, I love how his smile blew away all of my doubts every time, just like that picture did." Ino spoke softly as she slowly moved her hand down to gently grip Naruto's left hand.

In response, Hinata moved around to Naruto's other side and did the same with his right. She remained silent with a small smile as she awaited whatever Ino was getting at. The platinum blonde hesitated silently for some time before she determinedly locked her blue eyes with Hinata's pale ones.

"Naruto…-kun's near death pulled a lot of my feelings out in the open and I knew I was just lying to myself when I said before that I'd wait on other men. I knew back then Naruto-kun would be the closest thing to perfect for me. Hell, even dad was nudging me toward dating him, which is saying a lot." Ino let out a shaky chuckle before wiping a stray tear from her cheek.

"What I'm saying, Hinata-chan, is that I think I'm starting to love Naruto-kun and I want to explore that with him in the future." Ino said resolutely as she stared at Hinata's neutral expression. There was a long moment of silence between the two girls holding both Naruto's hands before Hinata nodded slowly.

"Ano…I'm not surprised, Ino-chan. However, why are you telling me this? It is up to Naruto-kun to decide on who he should love back." she quizzed but Ino scoffed.

"Please, we all know Naruto-kun, dense as he is, will fall in love with you soon enough. He will care about your happiness first and foremost, even though I know he has a heart big enough for more girls in it. We know the bylaws for the clans. With his heritage, he will be strongly encouraged to take multiple wives to restore his clan. We also know he's stubborn and honorable enough to refuse unless a certain beautiful blue-haired girl tells him it's okay." Ino said with a smirk as Hinata blushed at the compliment.

"In short, I'm asking you for your permission and, if I get your approval, to convince him otherwise." Ino finished seriously as she squeezed Naruto's hand to draw a little courage as she awaited whatever her friend said. Another moment of silence passed before Hinata suddenly smiled wide.

"Of course, Ino-chan! It took you long enough to realize this. If he returns your feelings, I look forward to the day we could really call ourselves sisters." Hinata happily said with a bright smile. Ino let out a relieved laugh and smiled back just as happily before something struck her.

"Oh right…I need him to return my feelings too." she murmured dejectedly as if she just realized a huge hurdle was in front of her.

"Ino-chan, it's not a problem. I know he cares for you a lot more than you realize. However, I do have one condition before you go after Naruto-kun." Hinata assured before she leaned in close across Naruto. Ino met her halfway with a confused frown.

"You still haven't told me how Naruto-kun helped you in the past." Hinata whispered with a grin. Ino laughed as she leaned back.

"I'd be happy to do that but it's a long story and I need to go home. Dad's probably wondering where the hell I am after that incident with the toad. Oh no…mom is going to be so devastated when I tell her about Naruto-kun." she said worriedly. Hinata nodded and they stood up to move around the bed and hug each other goodbye.

"I'll be by with fresh flowers every day. Think he'd like the scent of wisteria when he wakes up?" she said with a blush as she remembered that night with the seal drawing. Hinata blushed as well but she nodded happily before she remembered something.

"Ano…would it be okay if you stopped by my clan's compound and inform one of the guards at the front to let Father and Hanabi-chan know I'm staying here with Naruto-kun until he wakes up?" she asked shyly. Ino nodded quickly as she made for the door.

"Sure! I'll see you tomorrow." she called out as she exited.

**Later in the Hokage office**

"Hokage-sama, I completed my search through Jiraiya-sama's possessions. Aside from six very impressive swords and a manuscript I shouldn't mention in present company..." Boar reported with a sweat-drop as Yugao huffed from her place next to the Hokage. The Third grinned briefly before nodding for Boar to continue.

"…there wasn't anything unusual except for this one." he finished as he held out a small scroll.

"What's in there?" Yugao quizzed as she moved in to look it over.

"A male's severed head." Boar replied and the Third raised both eyebrows.

"Jiraiya-kun hadn't bothered to collect bounties ever since his books took off, except when he comes across and defeats strong missing nin. He must have had that head with him for that reason or another. Did you match the head to any record?"

"None that we could find so far. No entry in any bingo book or in the records of any country we share information with. When we unsealed it, it was still covered in head wrappings and the cut across its neck indicated Jiraiya-sama was using a kunai and in a hurry as he completed the job. He apparently never bothered to identify this man if he hadn't already known it beforehand. Also, the head had some snowflakes on it when it came out of the scroll, indicating the sealing happened in a winter environment." Boar reported.

"Snow…that had to be Land of Iron. This was recent." Yugao supplied.

"Still, Jiraiya-kun had to have taken the head for a reason if not for bounty or identification." the Hokage puzzled out before all three had the same thought and their eyes widened in realization.

"Memory!" they exclaimed at the same time. Hiruzen rose out of his seat immediately.

"I don't care who…someone get me Yamanaka Inoichi right now!"

**In the T&I building fifteen minutes later**

The Yamanaka clan head would have been very upset at this moment as he silently walked through halls with a focused frown. Inoichi was just called here straight from comforting his wife, who was very distraught when Ino returned home with news of Naruto's brush with death. The additional news that he was grievously injured in his left eye did not help at all, either. However, only one reason stayed Inoichi's fury at being called away so suddenly, leaving Ino alone to deal with her crying mother, and that was doing this job would possibly lead to a clue on who hurt Naruto badly. He had to come to think of the boy almost like a son over the years and he also knew Naruto was the inspiration for Ino taking her training more seriously as of late. He was forever grateful to Naruto for helping his daughter become stronger and more capable of protecting herself in this cruel world. As protective as he was of Ino, he also secretly hoped Ino would fall in love with Naruto someday. He knew that boy would treat Ino the best out of all the males she would ever meet in her life.

"I'm here, Hokage-sama." Inoichi announced as he entered an autopsy lab with the Hokage and the ANBU Neko waiting in it.

"Excellent. We need your expertise on this. In this scroll on the table is a severed head Jiraiya-kun took and sealed recently. We believe he felt this man had information on this incident and he took the head with the sole expectation that you would scan its brain for any possible clue." the Hokage explained as he pointed at an ordinary scroll sitting on a stainless steel examining table. Inoichi nodded silently as he stepped up to the table and unrolled the scroll. With a quick application of chakra, a severed head appeared with a pop. It had very ordinary features with short brown hair that showed this man would have been easy to lose in a crowd. He then pressed a palm each onto the temples to prepare his special mind-diving technique.

"I'm going in." he muttered before he felt his consciousness being drawn in.

**Thirty minutes later**

Inoichi breathed in heavily through his nose before he let go of the severed head. He stepped back and stared down at the head with smoldering anger in his eyes. The Hokage and Yugao rose out of their chairs upon the blond man's movement.

"Did you find out anything?" the Hokage asked anxiously.

"It was this man who led a team of ten shinobi to either capture or kill Naruto-san in the Land of Iron. Also, please remind me not to piss off Jiraiya-sama. The last thing this man saw was his face and he was very angry about Naruto-san being hurt." Inoichi muttered as he tore his gaze from the severed head, his hands twitching to destroy it.

"A team of ten? Unless they were very skilled, I can't believe Jiraiya-kun would have been impeded enough to have allowed Naruto-kun to get into that condition." the Third said with confusion.

"No, he arrived after the fact just in time to get Naruto-san here. Also, remind me not to piss off that boy as well." Inoichi replied with a mirthless grin as he washed his hands at a nearby sink and turned back to a stunned Hokage and Neko.

"Y-y-you mean to say Naruto-kun was the one who defeated all ten of them?" Yugao squeaked out, forgetting her professional manner.

"He was very determined and clever. I also have to admit I was concerned when you explained to us years ago that Naruto-san would be training to utilize the Kyuubi's power. After what I saw through this man's eyes, I'm happy to say your decision was correct, Hokage-sama. It was what saved him." Inoichi said with a grateful smile. He also was more assured of Ino's protection under Naruto. If that boy was this determined to survive for others, Inoichi could hardly imagine how far he would go to protect his friends, especially the ones he loved. The Hokage's eyes widened at Inoichi's meaning and grinned a little at the possible success of the project to obtain all of the Kyuubi's old chakra.

"Unfortunately, he wasn't able to use his newfound power until most of the damages were already done to him. Those bastards took their time harassing and wearing him down until he was cornered and about dead. They were going to slice his throat wide open when he finally accessed the power and ripped them all apart." Inoichi added with a growl. The Hokage scowled and there was a hint of killing intent from the female ANBU.

"Hokage-sama, it was the traitor Orochimaru who ordered this mission." Inoichi added with a grim expression. The Hokage's eyes widened as his face paled in shock and Yugao clenched her fists. Anko was not going to be happy about this too.

"That's not even the worst part, Hokage-sama."

"There's more?" the Hokage whispered with dread growing.

"The memory was getting hazy at that point since I can only go so far back in a deceased man's brain, but it was Shimura Danzo who told Orochimaru about Naruto-san leaving Konoha. This man himself was the one who personally handed the message to the traitor and he overheard Orochimaru mention Danzo and Root clearly. They've apparently been working together for some time at least." Inoichi reported before he stepped back in fear from a large spike of the Third's killing intent.

"He what?" he growled out.

**Later that evening in Danzo's home**

Shimura Danzo was writing on some papers in his study as his thoughts went over today's events. That boy's luck infuriated him to no end and he was very displeased with Orochimaru's apparent failure. It also presented a possible issue for him. He wondered if this would lead back to him somehow but he assured himself if that defective weapon knew anything, it would be moot after the agent he sent out tonight completed his job.

_Now how can I play this to my advantage? _he began to ponder until something tapped on his right shoulder that froze him in place. He frowned. His ex-teammate was always the best in stealth on the team.

"I would have invited you into my home like a good host if you had knocked at the front door as a proper guest would, Hiruzen." he spoke calmly as he carefully leaned back against his chair, his mind frantically going through every possible escape route and attack pattern as the thing on his shoulder pressed down hard enough to keep him from moving.

"In this situation, I'm afraid I have to let myself in." spoke a voice cold enough to freeze water. The Hokage was standing behind Danzo in his battle gear with his right hand using his weapon of choice, the bo staff, to keep his ex-teammate in the chair.

_Shit. He's using that voice. I will die tonight unless I escape. _

"What situation would that be?"

"The fact you began the chain of events that lead to one Uzumaki Naruto's current condition by sending some sensitive information about him to the traitor Orochimaru." Hiruzen's voice growled out and his bo staff trembled as it pressed down painfully on Danzo's shoulder.

_Damn it. What a bad time to have used the Sharingan's power recently. If that arrogant snake wasn't taking so long to regenerate my arm with the First's cells, I may have been able to fight with Hiruzen on equal terms but I need to escape now. Those two will distract him long enough._

"I see. It is unfortunate you found out, but that failed weapon is dangerous and needed to go." he muttered out before he let out a pained grunt when Hiruzen's bo staff lifted and slapped down hard on his shoulder in an instant, breaking his collar bone.

"That **human boy**_-" _the Hokage ground out forcefully as he pressed his staff down on Danzo's injured shoulder to make him grimace. "-has taken on and killed ten trained enemy shinobi all by himself in an extremely hostile environment without most of his abilities and tools at his disposal. I would love to see what your definition of a perfect weapon is." he spat out.

"You can meet two of them right now." Danzo smirked as he prepared himself to escape once the fighting began. At that moment, shadows shimmered behind Hiruzen and two Root agents began to step out. It seemed certain they would attack the Hokage, however he wasn't moving or even looking concerned. Danzo frowned at the lack of action on his ex-teammate's part and he was still trapped.

"Perfect or not, it seems my personal force is just a bit better than yours." Hiruzen spoke with a hint of bitter amusement in his voice. Two loud thumps followed as the Root agents fell out of their shadows dead. Two ANBU then slowly stepped out of the same spots in the wall, cleaning their bloodied swords. Danzo gritted his teeth and clenched his left hand on the chair's armrest.

"Anything to report?" the Hokage was feeling a little vindictive tonight and wanted Danzo to hear this before he was executed. Yugao stepped forward while Dragon remained silent.

"Sweeps of all six known Root installations are underway. We have eliminated all who resisted so far with only minor injuries on our side. Some have sworn allegiance to the true leader and surrendered." the cat-masked ANBU reported. There was an undertone of anger in her voice toward Danzo for ultimately hurting Naruto.

"Damn it!" Danzo couldn't contain his frustration at this.

"I knew everything about your little operation. I understood the need to do the 'dirty work', as it were, for our continued security and stability. Only Kami knows how many times the other villages have done the same thing against us. I would have eventually created a secret black unit within the ANBU for that purpose but you unknowingly took up that role. You did it amiably so I let you continue under Dragon-san's watchful eye." Hiruzen explained to an increasingly angry Danzo. He was played like a fool!

"However, it all ended the moment you decided to openly associate with a traitor and tried to eliminate Naruto-kun. At the very least, I'm offering those who surrendered a chance to start up that black unit, so I suppose you can die assured some of your Root would live on."

"At least I will die also knowing that little shit will go down with me! This very minute, my agent is finishing the job that worthless snake should have done!" Danzo growled out.

"You what!?" Yugao hissed as she brandished her sword.

"At ease, Neko-san. I had a feeling he would do something like this so I stationed someone very capable at Naruto-kun's bedside. In fact, I sense him coming here right now." Hiruzen assured with a smirk as the door to the study banged open.

"Excuse me for letting myself in." a bored-sounding voice called out as a tall man with gravity-defying gray hair in a jounin outfit stepped into the room.

"Inu-taichou!" Yugao exclaimed in relief as Kakashi walked in holding something in his left hand.

"My handsome creator believed the get-well gift you sent Naruto was a little bit too dangerous, Shimura-san. I was sent here to return it in a less-than-ideal condition with his apologies since he felt he needed to remain with Naruto for now." the now-revealed shadow clone of Kakashi drawled as he casually tossed a severed head onto the desk with a thump. Danzo was now trembling with fury.

"Thank you and good job. Please take my compliments back to him." Hiruzen praised as the clone popped into smoke before he frowned down at the gritting Danzo.

"It doesn't look like you have anything left to say. Shimura Danzo...for multiple counts of treason by associating with a known traitor, interfering with the normal operations of this village's military, and attempted murder of Uzumaki Naruto, to name just a few of the many things you have done; you shall be put to death." the Hokage declared coldly as he removed his bo staff from Danzo's shoulder in preparation for a slash at his neck. At that moment, Danzo shot out of his chair and avoided the sharp swipe from Hiruzen. He landed across the room and turned around to face his ex-teammate.

"You don't deserve to be the Hokage, you fucking monkey! I should have been made one! I would have made this village much stronger and better than the others! They would have had no choice but to bow down to our might! You let this happen! I WILL TAKE YOU ALL DOWN WITH ME!" Danzo screamed insanely as he yanked down his yukata to reveal an ominous-looking seal on the left side of his chest. The two ANBU got into ready stances in front of the Hokage, who watched calmly with a pitying expression. This infuriated Danzo more than anything as he roared out.

"GO TO HE-!" he gasped in shock as a large gray clawed hand burst through his chest from behind where the seal was, rendering it useless. Coughing blood profusely from his mouth, Danzo feebly looked behind to take in the mean expression of a large and feral-looking monkey before darkness took him.

"**So you do have good ideas once in a while, Hiruzen."** the Monkey King growled out as he unceremoniously tossed Danzo's lifeless body aside like a piece of trash and shook the blood off his hand. He had been summoned outside the study before the confrontation just in case it got out of hand.

"Thank you for coming out to assist us, King Enma. Secure his body and check him over. Make sure there are no more surprises." the Hokage ordered of his escorts, who quickly moved to the corpse.

"**At least you took a traitor seriously now compared to the last time."** Enma muttered pointedly before popping into smoke to go back home. Hiruzen frowned at the obvious jab.

"I have every intention of killing Orochimaru the next time we meet." Hiruzen said resolutely. That bastard did put Naruto in that condition, even though Danzo was the one who set this up.

"Hokage-sama, you need to see this." Dragon's mask-distorted voice called out. The Third turned with a frown and stepped closer. His eyes widened in surprise as he took in a Sharingan eye peeking out from under the bandages covering Danzo's supposedly useless right eye.

"That's Uchiha Shisui's!" the Hokage growled as he easily recognized this particular Sharingan's unique design. He also instantly remembered some of the political dealings that oddly went Danzo's way after a certain point each time.

"Just how much damage has he caused with that?" he muttered numbly as he wondered just how often Danzo influenced the council meetings and votes to go his way with the powerful hypnotizing nature of that Sharingan. He had heard Shisui wasn't able to use it often and he hoped that was the case with Danzo as well. He shook his head and looked down at his ex-teammate's body.

"Damn you, Danzo. Remove it and preserve it in a secure location, Dragon-san. This just became a S-rank secret!" the Hokage ordered firmly. As he watched his ANBU shift into action, he had to wonder what to do about this new discovery. He had an idea but he'd rather discuss it with someone first.

**Few days later in Naruto's mindscape**

Naruto's one eye fluttered open slowly and it hurt for a moment as it took in the bright light from the overhead 'sun'. He felt a little tender as he moved and flexed his arms and legs. He raised a hand up to his left eye to feel a scar cut diagonally from his forehead to the top of his left cheekbone. His left eye just simply wasn't there.

"It's gone even in the mindscape, huh?" he muttered with a sad smile. Letting out a sigh, he realized he was lying on his back in some tall grass. Smiling, he breathed in the scent and slowly rose himself into a sitting position. Looking around, he realized he was in the middle of a grassy hill next to a high cliff overlooking a sea with calm waves crashing soothingly against its base. He recognized the large and red form of his friend some distance away. Kurama was sitting on her haunches atop the cliff staring out at the sea with a calm expression. Naruto pushed himself to his feet before he realized he was feeling a little bit more of a draft than usual. Puzzled, he looked down at his body to find he was completely naked and sighed wearily.

"C'mon, this is my world. You know better than to appear without some clothes." he muttered as he looked down at himself accusingly while doing an exaggerated urging gesture at it as if impatient for something to happen. With a small hiss, a plain white t-shirt with blue shorts wisped into existence covering him.

"That's better." Naruto nodded with approval before he walked the short distance to Kurama. He came along her long tails lying spread out on the ground behind her and reached out to run his hand through the fur on one of them. It twitched slightly as he walked down the long length with the hand out. He swore he heard Kurama sigh contentedly at one point. Finally reaching the main body, he gently patted the side of her rear leg before breaking off. He stood on the edge of the cliff to her left side looking out at the sea as well. They remained silent for a long time.

"**Welcome back, Naruto." **Kurama finally spoke, still staring out at the calming sea. Naruto nodded with a small smile.

"How close did I come?" he queried as he shifted his gaze up to Kurama's face. He saw her glowing red eyes tighten.

"**You were so close the seal temporarily became disabled and I could have forced my way out before you passed away." **she said straightforwardly. She finally looked down at her friend for the first time and had to hold back a sad expression at the sight of his unusable left eye. Naruto frowned.

"Why didn't you take that shot? I wouldn't have blamed you."

"**That's all you have to say? No heartfelt 'Thank you' for remaining behind to make sure you lived?" **Kurama muttered hotly with a frown.

"What the hell am I supposed to say!? 'Oh Kurama, thank you! I hope you didn't mind risking dying with me by staying here to keep me alive for just a few more seconds longer. You were then rewarded with watching your chance at freedom slip away through your fingers. We must be great friends like that!'" Naruto retorted gesturing out the mock speech.

"**I don't want my freedom if it meant going out into a world that hates me and would hunt me down for power without you around!" **Kurama growled out angrily. Naruto stared back up at her defiantly for a long moment between the two before he expelled a loud sigh.

"I'm sorry if I didn't sound grateful. I really am. It's just that not many people would 'go down with a sinking ship', so to speak, for someone else in this world. Really, thank you. I know without you, I never would've survived." Naruto said gently as he bowed to Kurama, who sighed as well.

"**I shouldn't have snapped at you like that. You've always had such a noble streak and I should've expected that. I'm glad to see you again and there's something I've been wanting to do for a long time." **she said mysteriously as she moved her left hand to put it on the ground next to Naruto, who looked at it confusedly. The great fox concentrated for a moment and Naruto saw her entire body glow red before it started to shift and change. After a few second it looked like the fox's left hand was quickly absorbing the entirety of her body into it, much to Naruto' astonishment. Finally, the hand, which was the only thing remaining of Kurama's body, slowly changed its shape and shrank further until it began to resemble something human-like. Naruto watched agape as the shape reached its final size and took definition.

Before him stood a beautiful woman with dark skin wearing a bright red kimino with white leaves pattern that wrapped tightly around her waisr. However, it hung loosely off her bare and enticing shoulders. That had the effect of showing off the cleavage between her modest but desirable B-cups breasts that fit her slim frame perfectly. She had her long and naturally curly black hair tied up, using a bright red decorative hair tie, into an elegant high ponytail that flowed down to her mid-back. Her long curly bangs framed her round face as her soft-looking and pouty lips formed into a mischievous grin. Her small and straight nose wrinkled slightly as she seemed to be testing her human nose after so long. Her best facial feature had to be her exotic slatted eyes displaying an amazing shade of gold and they shone with brilliance, confidence, and intelligence. They also contrasted perfectly with her smooth and exotic dark skin.

The most surprising feature, however, was her height. She was very petite and slim at a height of five feet, an inch or two shorter than Naruto's current height. He was going to be a giant compared to her when he finished growing up. He gulped as he took in the sight of her. She may be short but he would never mistake her for a child. She made it all work and exuded confidence and sexiness as she started to strut toward him. She smirked wider at his flabbergasted expression, allowing a small and cute fang to poke out through her lips.

"I see you're surprised by my human form." Kurama spoke in a soft and melodious voice that was a direct opposite to her fox form's authoritative one. That wasn't to say she didn't demand respect, as evidenced by her stature. He knew right away not to mess with this small woman, even if he hadn't watched her shrink herself from a hundred-meter-tall demon fox in front of him. She stopped as she stood chest to chest with the stunned Naruto and slowly wrapped her arms around his neck. She then gently pulled him in for a tight hug.

"Oh, it feels so good to hug someone like this again after so long. I'm glad to see for myself you're really alive and well." she muttered contentedly as she nuzzled her nose into Naruto's neck. He was still slow to react to the sudden change in the situation but he at least managed to wrap his arms around her slim waist. Kami, her body was so soft!

"Wha-?" Naruto sputtered out dumbly when Kurama stepped back after a long moment of hugging each other with that beautiful and mischievous smirk still in place. She was clearly enjoying this.

"Ara, I believe I have struck the normally unflustered Uzumaki Naruto speechless with my beauty." she observed with some smugness. She chuckled lightly as she watched Naruto reboot his brain functions. He shook it off and grinned.

"Wow, for a fake human form, you're gorgeous. I never would have expected you to look like this. I was sort of expecting a tall and regal-looking woman with bright red hair and red eyes or something like that. And probably huge breasts." Naruto admitted shyly as he took one more look over his friend's form. Kurama smirked before giving a pouty frown.

"That sounded rather tacky and would have attracted too much attention when I was hiding among humans in past civilizations. This is the form I've always preferred. Also, who said this was fake?"

"I'm not sure you're any less conspicuous like this, especially with those golden eyes." Naruto retorted. "And you said it yourself; your fox form was the one true form." Kurama copied Naruto's usual sheepish pose with a reluctant smile, showing off both of her small fangs.

"Oh right, I did, huh? Well, this may be a shock to you, but there's this thing called lying." she joked with a grin, making Naruto face-fault.

"I'm a sentient chakra construct. Any form I take is true." she explained shortly to a grumbling Naruto.

"It figures. If you could change into this form any time, I'd think that Uchiha would have had a problem finding you if you were hiding among the people." he pointed out. Kurama gave a shrug, which had her kimino slide down her shoulders a little, showing off more of her slim and smooth-looking upper body. Naruto swallowed hard as he worked to keep his eyes level with Kurama's golden ones.

"That may be so if it wasn't for the fact that I can't conceal my immense power even in this form. It's simply impossible for me to suppress all of it from you chakra-sensitive humans. So, instead, I went as big and as dangerous-looking my power would allow to scare them off. For most of my life before that, the humans weren't sensitive to chakra so I could hide among them and only worry about an occasional human who actually felt my presence." Kurama explained to Naruto's nod of understanding.

"It was only when the humans started to reconnect with chakra and develop skills in this civilization that I had to either run and hide in the most secluded spot in the world or stay and intimidate them with my fox form. The latter choice worked great for a long time until an arrogant Uchiha came along." she finished with an annoyed frown.

"While I'm glad you've deemed me worthy enough to see your human form, I have to ask why the sudden change now?" Naruto quizzed with a cocked head.

"Two things. I want to show you how relieved I was to see you fully recovered. I felt a nice and long hug was the best way but I'm not sure doing it in my fox form would end well for you, however." Kurama said with an amused smirk. Naruto sweat-dropped at the image in his head.

"I thank you for your consideration for this poor and puny human." he jokingly spoke formally, making the petite woman chuckle.

"Considering you lived through a five-day-long absorption process and survived the full force of an avalanche, I'm going to have to evaluate you just a bit higher than the rest of the 'puny' humans."

Naruto smirked with some pride at Kurama's admission.

"So what's the second thing?"

"You've learned all you can with Raging Fox and Thrashing Tails from my apparitions. There's only so much your mindscape will accommodate my thought processes before there was too much of a lag between our minds. I'll be personally taking over teaching you from this point on. Because of that, I'll be staying in this form for the most part." Kurama finished. Naruto raised an eyebrow.

"So I still have some more training to go."

"You've learned almost all of the kata for both styles. You just need experience against a stronger and faster opponent and you'll be able to polish your kenjutsu and taijutsu to a higher level." Kurama explained with a proud smile before stepping in to hug Naruto again. Naruto readily returned it this time.

"It really is good to see you back on your feet, Naruto. The time period when Jiraiya quickly transported your broken and dying body to Konoha was the longest few hours of my long life and that's saying something."

"So I'm back here in Konoha, then. Wait…did you say hours? It takes days to get back here from Iron." the blonde said with a confused frown. Kurama remained in his arms but reached up with her right hand to pat it softly on his left cheek.

"From what I heard from conversations outside, it sounds like that old pervert exhausted all of his chakra and overdosed on soldier pills in order to summon three largest and fastest toads to quickly get you here from Iron for the best possible treatment. He spent everything he had and more to save you, Naruto. I'm thankful to him and you can tell this to him when he wakes up." Kurama spoke with genuine respect and smiled at Naruto's stunned expression.

"Ero-sennin did all of that! Wow…makes me almost forget about the whole 'Tanoshii Otoko' thing." he muttered in awe while Kurama laughed lightly.

"Don't let him live that down, ever. I'll enjoy the laughs." she joked before she started to trace her thumb on Naruto's scar across his closed left eye and became visibly sad.

"Hey, it's okay. I'm alive and that's important. Plenty of shinobi have learned to deal with just one eye so I'll adapt quickly." Naruto assured but he was confused by Kurama's shake of her head.

"No, it's not that. To put it simply, I can regrow your eye."

"That's great! So why the sad face then, Kurama?"

"After all you went through, I'm not keen on putting you through some more pain while I help regrow it. Plus, I highly doubt the new eye will have the same beautiful blue color as your right eye. It may be most likely the red silted eye you show when you use the shroud. It'll scare people around you and they'll think I'm 'taking' you over." she muttered the last part in disgust. Naruto smiled and put a hand on his friend's shoulder.

"Oi, don't worry about the pain thing. I can take it easily and you know it. I don't give a shit about what the others say either. Only what my friends feel matters to me and I know they'd be as happy as I am to have two working eyes again. If it's a real problem, then I'll just wear an eye patch like Kakashi-sensei. No big deal." Naruto assured. Kurama smiled before adopting a saucy smirk.

"Mmm, you with an eye patch… I think that'd be sexy. I'll bet Hinata won't be able to keep her hands off you." she teased. Naruto chuckled and waved it off as if that was impossible.

"Hinata-chan's so kind and gentle I can't imagine her doing something like that." he frowned when Kurama chuckled and patted his cheek again but in a condescending manner this time before she stepped back and turned around.

"Oh you poor, deluded, and soon-to-be pleasantly surprised fool." she laughed into the air as she walked away swaying her hips with some gentle breezes blowing her curly black hair around a little.

"Oi! What's the hell that's supposed to mean?!" Naruto called out after her.

"Find out for yourself! I'll talk to you later about the eye. For now, you should greet the rest of your friends and be sure to tell Hinata how you truly feel." Kurama shot back and she casually waved a hand over her shoulder as she continued walking. Naruto stared after her with a bemused expression before shaking his head as he willed himself back into his real body.

**Outside in the hospital bed**

Naruto almost groaned aloud as he awoke in his physical body this time. Waking up in the mindscape and here were two different things. He felt his body aching all over and there were twinges of sharp pain around where his left eye used to be. He had to make a conscious effort to keep from 'feeling' around in his damaged eye socket with his oddly loose eyelid. He would worry about that later when Kurama was ready to regenerate his eye. He slowly opened his other eye and winced silently at the brightness of the room. It took a moment for the vision to adjust and he saw that he was back in Konoha indeed. He easily recognized this room from visiting here so many times after injuring himself in training. Looking around, he saw Jiraiya sleeping peacefully in the other bed and grinned upon seeing his godfather all right. Other than that, the room was mostly empty except for one more person.

Naruto smiled happily upon seeing the long indigo-colored hair of Hyuuga Hinata carefully laid out on his bed along his right side. She was apparently taking a nap, resting her head on the mattress next to his hips while tightly holding on to his right hand with both hands as if it was her only lifeline. His heart almost burst with relief at seeing the peacefully sleeping face of his long-time friend. He frowned at himself as he wondered how he was so blind for so long to her apparent feelings. It was so obvious and he was going to change things now.

Carefully and gently removing his right hand from Hinata's clutches, he almost laughed out loud at the cute whine she emitted on the loss of contact as she clenched her fingers feebly for him. He reached down and touched his fingers to her warm cheek and ran them up softly into her long hair. At first, Hinata didn't stir and he tried it again. This time, Hinata's eyes fluttered open a little and she instinctively moved her head to lean into the caress, desperate for more of Naruto's touch. She whined once more when Naruto removed his fingers from her hair to make another pass. As he caressed once more, Hinata did finally wake with a gentle gasp and leaned into it even more.

"Naruto-kun…" she moaned out at the caress and she gently grabbed his hand with her both hands to slowly and almost sensually rub her cheek against his fingers with a long blissful sigh. It was like she was waiting for that affectionate gesture for so long. Now that she's got it, she wasn't going to let it stop any time soon.

"Welcome back, Naruto-kun." she whimpered tearfully and Naruto felt some teardrops run down his hand as she nuzzled it for a few long minutes.

"I'm sorry I worried you, Hinata-chan." he muttered sadly as Hinata let her tears run freely and silently. Without saying a word, she crawled onto the bed next to Naruto and carefully buried her face into his chest as she pulled and draped his right arm around her shoulders.

"Naruto-kun, for just a moment, I thought you were going away. It easily was the worst thing I've ever felt in my life." she whispered thickly, her tears wetting Naruto's hospital gown.

"Oi…I'm here. Not in one piece, but I'm back, Hinata-chan." he said soothingly with a bit of humor. Hinata shook a little as she scoffed before crying some more. She grasped tightly onto his gown with both hands as if refusing to ever let him go and Naruto just allowed her to let it all out for a few minutes as he began raking his fingers through her hair.

"Hinata-chan." Naruto began slowly as he continued combing through her long and silky hair. She calmed herself a little to listen for the moment.

"Out there in the mountains, there were many reasons why I had to survive and come back here, to everyone. However, I realized something even more important than all of those reasons." Hinata raised her head; her puffy eyes staring up at Naruto's blue one. She was starting to realize what Naruto was getting at.

"I had to come back to you, Hinata-chan. I refused to let myself die no matter what before I could tell you this."

"A-ano…N-naruto-kun?" she whispered, not wanting to assume anything, but her heart was about to burst from the anticipation.

"I love you, Hinata-chan. I think I always did since long ago but I was just too stupid to realize it until now." Naruto finally admitted, as he looked Hinata in her trembling eyes. There was silence for a few seconds as they stared at each other.

"I love you, too!" Hinata blurted out finally. There was so much emotion put into those words and in her pale eyes that it just stunned Naruto. She quickly hoisted herself above Naruto's chest using her right hand on the mattress and crawled up, her face inching closer to his.

"I love you!" she repeated throatily as she reached up with her left hand and ran her fingers up his blushing cheek reverently. They eventually moved up into his mostly unwrapped hair until she was able to gently take hold of it. Her flushed face inched closer and Naruto could do nothing but watch in awe at just how much raw emotion Hinata was pushing into this very moment. Instinctively, his arms moved up to wrap around her waist. Taking that as his permission, she gently laid on him and her body molded greedily to his. Her right hand then joined her left in Naruto's hair. She panted slightly, her warm breath caressing Naruto's slightly open lips as they were just barely an inch apart. She quickly licked her dry lips and Naruto couldn't help but do the same with his too. Her small and soft pink lips looked so inviting.

"Oh, Kami…I love you so much, Naruto-kun. I've been looking forward to this for a long time." Hinata breathed out before her trembling lips finally touched his and their eyes fluttered closed. It was so soft and warm and it sent pleasant shivers throughout both their bodies. It was unlike anything they experienced before and they wanted more of it. Naruto returned the kiss and deepened it a little as radiant warmth flooded their bodies. He tightened his arms around her waist, making her gasp happily against his lips. She pressed her body further against him as she clenched her hands tightly in his hair. After a long minute of gentle kissing, they eventually broke apart, but not before they got in a few more quick kisses at the end as if to store them up. They reluctantly let go of each other and Hinata pulled back a little, though it was clear she didn't want to. She and Naruto had dazed smiles.

"Wow…" they both breathed out at the same time. They chuckled happily as Hinata rested her head on his chest and they cuddled up together. They listened contentedly to each other's breathing for some time.

"Ano…thank you for coming back to us. I don't know what I'd do without you." she whispered finally as she snuggled tighter into while Naruto wrapped his right arm around her shoulders again.

"I had no choice. It was them or me. Considering they were planning on taking me back to be experimented on by Orochimaru, I'm pretty sure I was the good guy in this one." he muttered with a shrug. Hinata frowned.

"Naruto-kun, no matter whatever you did and will do in the future, you will always be a good person to me. All of your friends would say the same."

"That's good because those ten guys wouldn't agree…especially the last four." he said with a weak smile as he lifted his free left hand to flex it.

"Remember when I told you I was learning to control the fox's powers, Hinata-chan? Well, I made a breakthrough at the very last second to save my ass. I was just surviving, but to them, I was a monster that happily plucked their body parts off them like flower petals then tossed them all over the mountain range." he added with a nervous expression, wondering about her reaction. However, Hinata smiled happily as she reached out for his left hand and brought it in to nuzzle her cheek against it slowly.

"Ano…that means you're able to protect yourself better from now on. That also means you have a better chance of coming back alive each time. That's all I need to hear."

"You're a little selfish about me, aren't you?" Naruto teased with a grin. Hinata surprised him by moving up to kiss him on his lips for a moment before fixing him with a light glare.

"They're not you, Naruto-kun. They won't ever be. Besides, they hurt you and nearly killed you, so they can go to hell for all I care." Hinata spoke decisively as she stared at Naruto's surprised expression, daring him to tell her otherwise.

"I see what the fox meant." Naruto muttered. Hinata cocked her head cutely in confusion. Before she could ask about his cryptic statement, someone clearing a throat at the door made her jump. She tried her best to crawl off Naruto and back into her seat with all the poise she could muster but she was staring down at her lap with an enormous blush. Naruto chuckled at her cute reaction but he was blushing as well. Ino was grinning evilly as she observed them from the door, holding a new batch of flowers to exchange with the old ones sitting on Naruto's bedside table. Next to it was a pot of wisteria.

"I just saw something very interesting between Hinata-chan and Naruto-kun!" Ino said in a singsong voice as she stepped lightly into the room to exchange the flowers. Naruto smiled happily at Ino's playful and refreshing attitude. He was also wondering about her suddenly calling him with the 'kun' suffix but he found it felt nice. Ino disposed of the old flowers then turned and stood by the bedside opposite from Hinata and waited expectantly. Naruto smiled brightly as he opened up his arms.

"I'm back, Ino-chan." he said.

"Welcome back, Naruto-kun. I missed you but I'd rather you didn't come back early if it meant you were going to end up half-dead." Ino murmured with her voice cracking a little as she reached in to hug Naruto tightly. She sighed happily as she rubbed her cheek against his.

_So warm…I want more. _Ino thought and, as if almost on instinct, she gave his cheek a long peck, surprising herself and Naruto. Feeling a little thrill, she did it again before reluctantly withdrawing with red cheeks. A glance in Hinata's direction revealed a knowing smirk, making Ino blush more. She was happy to see Naruto blushing a little with a slightly dazed smile. It felt like a positive reaction to her. She cleared her throat.

"I hope you gave whoever did this to you hell! You worried us so much by letting them hurt you like this." she admonished gently. Naruto chuckled and did his usual sheepish pose.

"I think I did rather well in giving them hell, considering I was the only one left standing afterward." he said with a shrug.

"Good!" Ino approved before she became forlorn as she reached out for Naruto's bandaged left eye.

"I just wish they didn't manage to deprive this world of one of your beautiful eyes beforehand." she muttered sadly as her fingertips lightly traced down his cheek. Naruto smiled as he gently took her hand in his and gave it a squeeze.

"I'll be alright, Ino-chan."

Ino nodded slowly as she held back a sniffle. She shook her head, whipping her long ponytail around, before she smiled brightly.

"I'm going to let everyone know you're awake!" she announced and ran out of the room quickly before either could try to stop her.

"I guess no alone time for a while, Hinata-chan." Naruto leaned back into the bed with a sigh. Hinata smiled and leaned in to give him a peck on the cheek, making him blush.

"Ano…it doesn't mean we can't do that anytime we want, Naruto-kun." she said a little impishly. Naruto smiled before he adopted a slightly guilty expression.

"Hinata-chan, I don't know how to tell you this carefully so I'll just say it as it is. Back in the mountains I also realized that I like Ino-chan a little and Anko–chan as well. I don't know why I'm feeling this when this should be only about you. Don't worry, I like you the most of all and I want to make this work with you." he spoke straightforwardly, wanting to resolve this before he would move on any further with Hinata. However, he was surprised to see Hinata smiling.

"Ano…thank you for being honest about this. However, I would be happy to give my blessings to whatever may happen with them. I only ask that you wait and let them come to you and tell you how they feel first. They need to be sure about this. I believe you already feel this way about them because you instinctively knew I would have been fine with this. So, there is nothing to feel guilty about, Naruto-kun. Ino-chan and Anko-chan would be very good to you too if they work out." she assured as she took Naruto's hand and interlocked fingers.

"Isn't this weird, though? As dumb as I have been about girls, I know this isn't exactly normal." Naruto muttered with an adorably confused expression. Hinata couldn't resist leaning in and give him another kiss on the lips.

"I'll teach you about the bylaws for the clans soon. I knew this would come up ever since you revealed your heritage so I was already prepared. Ino-chan knows as well too and she's perfectly fine with this as long as we're satisfied with whoever else you may choose." she promised while Naruto nodded with a frown.

"Ok, but we'll be talking about this later." he promised as well and they eventually moved on to small talks for a few minutes.

"How nice…a pretty girl at your bedside." a man's deep voice rumbled from the other side of the room. Naruto grinned happily.

"You're better off without one. You're likely to have her poison you in your sleep, Ero-sennin!" Naruto shot back as he and Hinata turned toward the other bed. Jiraiya was awake and grinning in their direction.

"I see you're alive and well, gaki. Looks like I owe Boss a huge favor." Jiraiya spoke in a relieved tone. Naruto nodded and fixed him with a grateful look.

"Jiraiya, I don't know what to say. I can't tell you how thankful I am that you went all out to save me." he said gruffly, his tone thick with gratitude. The older man smiled and waved it off.

"It's my fault I let you get into that kind of shape. I should have been more adamant about going with you into the mountains."

"It doesn't matter. It's happened and we're both back and still alive. No need to dwell on this. Though I should tell you to stop using your fake name at inns, 'Tanoshii Otoko'." Naruto said with a smirk. Even the ever kind and gentle Hinata flinched and stared at Jiraiya in what would be considered a 'Are you stupid?' expression for her. That was enough to stab Jiraiya right through the heart. Meanwhile, Kurama was laughing uproariously in Naruto's mind.

"Oh shit. I led them right to you, didn't I?" the embarrassed Toad Sage groaned.

"Perhaps, but they probably would have found us with or without that stupid name. You were also compromised on your finances. Someone's spying on your money trails for that snake bastard."

"Damn it, and I have no one to blame but myself! I got too complacent and arrogant. I think I'll have to clean up house when I get out of here." Jiraiya muttered.

"I believe that's a fine idea, Jiraiya-kun. I also feel it would be time for you to retire that name as well. You've been using it since you were a genin." another man's voice cut in from the door. All eyes turned to see the Hokage standing at the door with a happy grin. Ino, Anko, and Yugao were standing behind him.

"Everyone!" Naruto cried out as they stepped into the room. Anko immediately walked up to Naruto, silently nodding at Hinata in the process. Without a word, she bent down and hugged Naruto for all he was worth.

"You have no idea how worried I was, Naruto." she whispered as she nuzzled her nose into his neck.

"I used some of your teachings and made them pay, Anko-chan." he assured as he patted lightly on her back.

"That doesn't mean anything if you come back here knocking on the death's door. Just please take care of yourself better next time." Anko pleaded quietly as she squeezed tightly before releasing and stepping back. The cat-masked Yugao inclined her head discreetly, showing she was glad to see him up as well.

They all chatted for a few minutes before the Hokage eventually announced he needed to speak with Naruto and Jiraiya in private. Now alone in the room, the three men got themselves comfortable.

"So exactly what the hell happened?" the Hokage simply asked before Jiraiya and Naruto spent the next hour correlating their stories together to paint the entire picture. The Hokage nodded, in awe at their refusal to give up until the very end.

"That's quite a predicament you went through, Naruto-kun and Jiraiya-kun. Both your stories match what Inoichi-san saw in the memories of the severed head Jiraiya-kun took."

Naruto turned toward Jiraiya with a grin.

"So you did hear what I said, Ero-sennin. I was so out of it I had no idea if you heard or not."

"So I assume that was a gold mine?" Jiraiya asked his sensei with a serious expression.

"It is. Unfortunately in some cases because, through that man's memories, we found out someone here in Konoha was responsible for what ultimately happened to you two." the Hokage said dourly.

"That's what the fox said when she overheard the enemy chatting while I was out cold. Who was this person?"

"Danzo." the room went silent at that name then a growl emitted from Jiraiya as he clutched at his blanket.

"That fucking old fossil! I knew he's bad news! We need to do something about him!"

"It's already been taken care of, Jiraiya-kun. I personally eliminated him as a traitor to Konoha the other night. He's out of our hair permanently." the Hokage assured the surprised patients.

"That quick, sensei? I can't imagine there being no political backlash from this one."

"Oh, I'm dealing with some but I found it easy to deal with the detractors by simply implying they worked with a traitor closely and now I have to wonder about them too." Hiruzen said with a grin. The room fell silent for a moment before the Third quietly reached into his haori and removed a scroll.

"This is information from the severed head's memories, Jiraiya-kun. It will lead you to the people who compromised your financial records. Deal with them however you see fit. It will also lead to a secret base. However, I'm sure it's been long abandoned by now when Orochimaru figured out that none of his men would return." Hiruzen said as he tossed the scroll at Jiraiya who caught it easily.

"Damn. Gaki, this means I need to leave soon and follow up on this when I'm back to full health. I need to fix the leaks so something like this doesn't happen again if we travel together in the future." Jiraiya said guiltily. Naruto laughed and waved it off.

"I'm going to be so obsessed with practicing using my new sabers this summer I'm liable to accidently cut one of your limbs off if you pass by too close. Go on, I'll be fine. I know you have things you need to do." he assured. Jiraiya nodded gratefully for his godson's understanding.

"Naruto-kun, I need to discuss something with you. After eliminating Danzo, we discovered a Sharingan in his possession." the Hokage began and Jiraiya rose an interested eyebrow. If he was suddenly bringing up a Sharingan at this time, then it was for that reason only.

"Whose was it, sensei?" he queried.

"Uchiha Shisui."

"What?! That's a powerful eyeball you have there for gaki!"

"Who was he and why does this have anything to do with me?" Naruto cut in, feeling a bit left out of the loop.

"Uchiha Shisui was one of the few Uchiha that most of us thought of as kind and loyal. Many other Uchiha felt entitled to everything and believed their Sharingan proved they were given the divine right to rule over others. Shisui-san did not follow that ideal, and he was also more devoted to the village's protection than advancing the clan's influence and power. Just before the Massacre, he disappeared leaving behind a suicide note, but we believed he was the first victim of the traitor Itachi." Hiruzen explained.

"That's an interesting history lesson. I still don't see what this has to do with me, though." Naruto said with a frown.

"His Sharingan was highly coveted, even in the Uchiha clan. In addition to its amazing prowess in battles, it had the ability to subtly influence a person into doing something he or she wouldn't have normally done and the person would never have known unless told. Danzo apparently was greedy enough to steal at least one of Shisui's eyes and take advantage of its power to influence political meetings and votes to go his way up until now." Jiraiya added in for his sensei.

"Now that we have recovered the Sharingan from Danzo, we believe we can transplant it into your eye socket as a replacement, Naruto-kun. A literal case of 'an eye for an eye', so to speak." the Third finally made his point. An agape Naruto sank back into his bed stunned at this offer while Jiraiya watched silently. He wasn't going to say anything to influence his godson's decision one way or another.

"You're saying I could have a Sharingan like Kakashi-sensei. You're trusting me a lot with that kind of power, too." the blonde murmured disbelievingly before the Third inhaled and let out a sigh.

"The truth is, we have no idea how to use that special power. Apparently, Danzo figured it out but he never left any documentation. So there is no guarantee you would be able to use that particular power in your lifetime anyway. You, however, would be able to copy jutsus instantly, predict the enemies' physical attacks to a degree, and be able to see chakra pathways in other shinobi. Even with those 'basic' powers of the Sharingan, you would gain an enormous advantage over a normal eye." the Hokage made his case. The room fell into silence as Naruto raised his left hand to his bandaged eye socket and mulled this over.

_I'm not going to take it. I don't need it. Plus, you'd have to look at me and be reminded each time of what happened to you in the past._

_**Thank you, but I'm made of tougher stuff. It'll be a powerful tool that will assist you in your career as a shinobi and you need to take this chance. I'll get used to it. **_Kurama spoke neutrality but Naruto knew she wasn't happy about this development.

_Kurama, I know how you feel about this. We also know we'll make it just fine without the Sharingan. Having that eye will be nothing but overkill. I also will not force any of my friends to 'get used' to something they don't like. In addition, this Sharingan also has the ability to control people, like Madara and that masked guy on my birthday. I don't want to risk accidentally using it on you and hurt our relationship. I don't need this._

_**Why should it matter how I personally feel about this? I'm helping you gain more power by letting you do this. Take the goddamn eye! **_she was getting more annoyed by the second.

"Jiji-san, I'm honored you considered me worthy of that Sharingan but I can't bring myself to accept it. I actually had the fox tell me earlier today that she could help regenerate my left eye. I want to take her up on that offer." Naruto spoke up as he turned to his grandfather figure, who raised an eyebrow at the ability to regenerate a lost eye. The medical professionals here would go crazy over that.

_**WHAT? You'd better change what you're saying right now! **_Kurama growled.

"I also feel having the Sharingan will be too much power for me to use responsibly." Naruto continued, ignoring her.

_**Don't do this! Take it!**_

"It also will bring up issues with a good friend of mine who have had bad experiences with the Uchiha clan. You may have to find another candidate for that Sharingan." he finished. He could feel Kurama was utterly speechless with fury. The Hokage nodded sadly but with a smile.

"The fact that you're reluctant about taking this convinces me you would be able to use the Sharingan responsibly. If you're still adamant, I'll have the Sharingan preserved and hidden away somewhere secure since there are no other candidates except you with your extraordinary adaptability, mature attitude, and your high chakra capacity for handling the Sharingan's power drain. Right now, this is a S-rank secret so do not tell anyone else without my permission. Should you change your mind in the future, we'll revisit this." the Hokage spoke with an accepting nod.

_**GET YOUR ASS IN HERE NOW! **_an angry voice growled loudly from the depth of Naruto's mind and he felt himself being pulled in slowly.

"Shit. Fox's not happy. I'll see you in a bit." he managed to say before he slumped back down onto his hospital bed unconscious. The Hokage and Jiraiya stared at the unmoving blonde in silence.

"Well, something tells me he made the decision too quickly. He should have known better than to piss off a strong female, human or fox." Jiraiya suddenly commented lightly with a grin.

"You would know from experience." the Hokage retorted with a smirk. "It's obvious from his changing expressions before he went under that the Kyuubi did not agree with his choice." he added as he looked worriedly at Naruto.

"Well, that's up to him and her to resolve this between them. I pity that brat, though." Jiraiya muttered lowly as the two older men looked at Naruto, feeling a little sorry for him.

**Back inside the mindscape**

It was a beautiful and quiet meadow that was mercilessly broken apart by something crashing into it hard enough to form a crater thirty meters in diameter underneath it.

"Ow." Naruto grunted as he laid spread eagle on his back in the center of the crater. He quietly muttered some thanks for his increased durability here in his mindscape.

"Damn it. I think that little unholy terror is even more dangerous compared to her giant fox form." he grumbled to himself as he shook himself out of his daze before he sensed something bearing down on him. He looked up just in time to see a small feet descending on him with rapid velocity and quickly rolled out of the way before the entire crater and the surrounding area shattered into giant pieces of earth under Kurama's powerful heel drop. Naruto acrobatically hopped his way across the pieces to flat ground outside the destroyed meadow. He sighed dejectedly as he watched a short dark-skinned woman pull her leg out of the wreckage and turn to him with obvious annoyance on her face. She had changed her outfits from the red kimino into a skintight black sleeveless singlet that went from her neck down to just above her knees and her long curly hair was pulled back tightly into a low ponytail. She was impatient for a fight.

"Oi, you're beating up an injured patient." he quipped as he thumbed at his non-existent left eye.

"I know and I'll be happy to injure you some more unless you accept that offer. You need more power." Kurama said calmly as she slowly and effortlessly made her way through the wreckage toward the blonde. Naruto sighed in resignation and shifted into his Raging Fox stance.

"I won't do it. I don't want the Sharingan and I know you don't either, Kurama." he said challengingly. Kurama frowned as she hopped onto the flat ground in front of him and adopted the same stance.

"Then I'll just have to change your mind, Naruto."

* * *

**Lemon: (tied up in a corner and gagged)**

**Hazel: Mwahahahaha! I finally got an evil cliffhanger out! **

**Lemon: MMMMFFMMFFF! (I'm so sorry everyone! I promise to bitchslap him stupid soon as I get out of this!)**

**Lemon: Mmmfmmf. (Not too stupid to keep writing this story, though. No worries.)**

* * *

**Seriously, I decided to stop this at that point because if I kept writing it would've been another 40,000 words epic. (sighs) My muse is pretty fired up, apparently. So don't worry, I can definitely promise you the next chapter will come in way less than that four months wait time from before. I'm still so sorry about that.**

**I'm sure some of you were a little surprised by the decisions I made in this chapter. I'll start with eliminating Danzo. I just have no need for him as a villain in this story. I have enough on my hand with Orochimaru and Akastuki and the others and I just have no more plan for Danzo beyond this point. So he's out. I also think the Hokage's actions on this would be correct in his role as a military dictator protecting his village. He saw Danzo as a threat so that old fossil was instantly gone with no chance for redemption. Unofficially, he may be pissed about Danzo hurting his surrogate grandson and there was some personal business in there. However, officially as a Hokage, Danzo associated with a traitor. He also almost cost Konoha a great deterrent to possible attacks from other villages with the loss of its jinchurriki and a powerful future shinobi, not to mention what Orochimaru could have done with new data from those kind of experiments. Danzo just put Konoha at risk as a whole for his wounded pride and selfish reasons.  
**

**My version of Kurama is probably different from what you're used from other stories on this site. Lemon and I liked the idea of an enormously powerful entity changing and shrinking into a petite and innocent-looking human woman. However, we all know she's not that innocent when she's pissed, as seen in the ending. I hope you'll like how I described her. **

**The loss of Naruto's left eye. I felt it was important for Naruto have a bit of a reminder from how close he came to death for real the first time in his life and how he got a little stronger from it as well. I'm kinda stuck on the fence about if I want to give him the Sharingan or not. The Sharingan may either please you or turn you off but I honestly don't feel this story calls for that. If I decide no, he'll have a new eye from Kurama instead and it'll have a couple features that'll be useful. It just won't be as powerful as the Sharingan. Like what Naruto said, I just think it might be overkill and it changes some of what I originally planned for this story, even though I have some badass ideas from how Madara used his Sharingan in combination with Kurama in recent manga chapters. **

**You're wondering what Naruto really looks like when transformed fully. Well...I'm sorry but I'm going to wait on that until a situation calls for it. It may not be for a few chapters at least, so you'll have to wait. You got enough clues as to the overall shape and purpose of his form so I think that'll satisfy you. **

**I think that's it. I hope you enjoyed this chapter and look forward to the next one where I'll be starting it off with a pretty nice battle between Naruto and Kurama. :-) Also Naruto finally graduates! By the gods, I'm going to make him graduate even if it takes me 100,000 words in one chapter! **

**In other news...the POLL IS STILL UP. IT WILL BE UP FOR TWO MORE CHAPTERS. I'll announce the winners at the end of chapter 19. **


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